Helsinki（Finland）

Helsinki（Finland）

[Overview] Helsinki is the capital of Finland, located on the Vironniemi Peninsula on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, surrounded by the Baltic Sea on three sides. Helsinki was designated as the capital of the country when Finland declared itself independent in 1917. It covers an area of 686 square kilometers and has a population of 635,000.

[Politics] Helsinki is governed by the City Council and the city government. The City Council has 85 members who are directly elected by the citizens for a term of four years. Under the Council are the City Board, Audit Committee and other departments. The City Board consists of 15 members elected from members of the City Council, for a term of two years. It directs the city administration, prepares the issues for the City Council, and supervises the implementation of City Council's decisions. The city government has one mayor and four deputy mayors, elected by the City Council for a term of four years. The incumbent mayor, Jan Vapaavuori, took office in June 2017.

[Economy] Helsinki is Finland's largest industrial center, with well-developed machinery manufacturing and shipbuilding industries. The city is also the country's largest wholesale and foreign trade center. More than half of Finland's imports and exports pass through Helsinki. With its convenient and well-connected transportation system, Helsinki is also a transportation hub of the country.

[Culture and Education] Helsinki has well-developed science, education and cultural industries. There are many museums, galleries and institutions of higher learning in the city. The University of Helsinki is the largest institution of higher learning in Scandinavia and the oldest in Finland. There are many large theaters, including the Finnish National Theater, Helsinki City Theater, and Swedish Theater. There are also many churches in Helsinki and the most famous one is the 500-year-old Helsinki Cathedral.

[Relations with Beijing] On July 14, 2006, Beijing and Helsinki officially became sister cities. In October 2019, the two cities signed the Work Plan for Promoting the Cooperation between Beijing and Helsinki (2019-2023). In recent years, Beijing and Helsinki have maintained good official ties and engaged in productive cooperation in investment, trade, tourism, culture and other fields.

Investment and Trade: In 2015, thanks to the facilitation of Zhongguancun Science Park's liaison office in Finland, the first session of Sluch China was held in Z-Park of Beijing. Slush is the world's leading startup and tech event in Finland. In 2016, Techcode set up its Northern European incubator in Helsinki, which covers an area of more than 1,200 square meters. In 2017, with the help of Finnish company Oilon, Beijing District Heating Group completed its NOx emissions reduction project (6,268 t/h) through upgrading burners and using flue gas recirculation (FGR) and precious metal catalysts. Now, NOx emissions of Beijing District Heating Group's boilers meet the strictest emission standard (below 30mg/m3). In 2018, Beijing Fusen Technology Co., Ltd. invested approximately US$8 million to build wood processing plants and paper mills in Finland.

Tourism: In 2014, Helsinki joined the World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF) which was initiated by Beijing. In 2019, the WTCF Fragrant Hills Tourism Summit was successfully held in Helsinki. It was the first time the summit had been held in a European country.

Culture: In 2016, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the sister-city relationship between the two cities, Helsinki held a large outdoor cultural exchange event “Hello, Helsinki!” at the Xidan Cultural Square in Beijing. Since 2007, Beijing would hold “Happy Chinese New Year” event in Helsinki every year. In 2018, the 12th Happy Chinese New Year Celebration and the first Beijing Week was held in Helsinki. It was the first time that elements of investment, trade, science, technology, sports and tourism had been incorporated into the event. Beijing Municipal Radio and Television Bureau held the 2019 China-Finland Film and TV Conference in Helsinki.

赫尔辛基市（芬兰）

【概况】赫尔辛基是芬兰首都，位于芬兰湾北岸的维洛尼埃米半岛上，三面被波罗的海包围。1917年芬兰宣布独立后，赫尔辛基市被定为首都。面积686平方公里，人口63.5万。

【政治】赫尔辛基城市管理机构包括市议会和市政府。市议会有85名议员，由市民直接选举产生，任期4年。市议会下设市政委员会、审计委员会等部门。其中，市政委员会成员由15人组成，一般情况下由议员担任，任期2年，负责城市管理、议会工作安排以及监督议会决议执行情况。市政府设有1名市长和4名副市长，由市议会选举产生，任期4年。现任市长扬·瓦帕沃里于2017年6月就职。

【经济】赫尔辛基是芬兰最大的工业中心，机器制造业和造船业发达。该市也是全国最大的批发中心和对外贸易中心，芬兰对外贸易中1/2以上的货物都从这里进出。赫尔辛基市还是全国的交通总枢纽，交通四通八达，十分便利。

【文化教育】赫尔辛基市科教文化事业发达，有众多博物馆、画廊和高等学府。赫尔辛基大学是斯堪的纳维亚地区最大的高等学府，也是芬兰历史最悠久的学府。市内较大的剧院有芬兰国家剧院、赫尔辛基市剧院和瑞典剧院等。赫尔辛基市教堂很多，其中最著名的是具有500年历史的赫尔辛基大教堂。

【两市交往】2006年7月14日，北京市与赫尔辛基市正式建立友好城市关系。2019年10月，两市签署《关于推进北京市与赫尔辛基市友城合作的工作计划（2019—2023）》。近年来，我市与赫尔辛基市保持着良好的官方往来，经贸、旅游、文化等领域合作成果突出。

经贸领域：2015年，中关村驻芬兰联络处将芬兰的国际知名创新创业大会“SLUSH”引入中国，在中关村软件园举办“SLUSH China”第一届大会。2016年，太库科技在赫市投资设立“北欧创业孵化中心”，孵化面积超过1200平方米。2017年，芬兰奥林公司通过更新改造原燃烧器、采用烟气再循环（FGR）、贵金属催化等技术，帮助北京热力完成“清煤降氮”改造6268蒸吨，使北京热力燃气锅炉NOX排放均达到30mg/m3以下的最严环保排放标准。2018年，北京福森科技有限公司投资约800万美元用于在芬建设木材加工厂和造纸厂等业务。

旅游领域：2014年，赫尔辛基市加入由我市发起成立的世界旅游城市联合会。2019年，世界旅游城市联合会香山旅游峰会在赫尔辛基市成功举办，这是该峰会首次在欧洲国家举办。

文化领域：2016年，为庆祝两市结好十周年，赫尔辛基市在西单文化广场举办大型户外文化交流活动“你好，赫尔辛基！”。我市自2007年起每年在赫尔辛基市举办“欢乐春节”活动。其中，2018年第12届“欢乐春节暨首届北京周”活动首次融入经贸、科技、体育、旅游等元素。2019年，市广播电视局在赫尔辛基市举办“2019北京优秀影视剧海外展播季·芬兰”活动。

（Source: Foreign Affairs Office of Beijing Municipal Government）