SUUPOHJA DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION

THE LAG

Local Action Groups (LAG's) help develop their operating area by funding local rural development projects and granting support for small rural entrepreneurs and communities.
They aim to increase the competitive capacity of their region and to make it a more attractive living environment by delivering LEADER funds.
The acronym LEADER stands for Liaisons Entre Actions de Développement de l’Économie Rurale, which is European Union's initiative for rural development.

Suupohja Development Association is one of the 55 LAG's in continental Finland.
SKY (short for Suupohjan KehittämisYhdistys, which means Suupohja Development Association in Finnish)
is a registered association that operates in the sub-region called Suupohja.
This area includes the municipalities of Kauhajoki, Isojoki, Karijoki, Teuva and the Jurva area of Kurikka:

the number of inhabitants is 30 000,
the area is 3 126 km² and
the population density is 10 inhabitants per km².

SKY was established by the local people of the Suupohja region. Executive manager with his staff does the operational work and the board makes decisions about the financing. 
The board has 15 members : 5 represent the municipalities, 5 local communities and 5 are private people. 

In addition to LEADER work, SKY has projects in the field of rural wastewater treatment and village movement. The staff gives advice on filling out a community investment money application and helps young people make their dreams come true by financing youth projects from its own funds.

THE PROVINCE

The Suupohja area is located in the province of South-Ostrobothnia in Western Finland.
The distance from the capital of the province, Seinäjoki, to the Finnish capital, Helsinki, is 350km.
The province has a strong entrepreneurship spirit, its own economic infrastructure offering city-level services for both inhabitants and visitors.
The area can be characterized as a combination of suburban and real countryside.

THEMES

Our international strategy is based on Suupohja Subregion’s Rural Development Programme “The Future Landscape” (Tulevaisuuden Maisema in Finnish).
You can find the summary of The Future Landscape here. 

If you want to learn more about our focal points and ongoing projects, don't hesitate to contact us!

CONTACT

We would be pleased to have new international contacts and partners, and we answer gladly all contact requests over the phone and per e-mail.

You’ll find our contact details here.