Theme

Projects within the theme should focus on one or more of the following:

1) Strengthening the creative industries and creative economy

Strengthen the creative industries and creative economy as a diversifier of the economic structure by:

• Improving business skills and digital competence
• Strengthening cross-sector operating models
• Increasing travel capabilities
• Developing the ability to act as different innovation platforms
   

2) Strengthening the arts and culture sectors

Strengthen the arts and culture sectors by developing the following areas, for example:

• Quality, impact and availability of services 
• Innovation activities
• Production skills
• Sustainable development of cultural environments
• Cultural diversity skills

ESF+ funding enables development work that would not be possible within the regular activities of the applicant. In other words, the funding does not cover basic operations.

The activity to be funded should have a national impact. Cross-sectoral changes and changes within the global operating environment should be taken into account, such as digitisation, the data economy, climate change, and changes caused by the demographic structure and the Covid-19 pandemic.

Applicants may be institutions of public law and legal persons governed by private law, such as various communities, companies, associations, municipalities, learning institutes and cooperatives.

Funding is not available to working groups, private traders or individuals.

The target groups of funded projects should be actors and professionals in the creative industries or other actors who utilise the expertise of the creative industries.

Examples of target groups include:

• Employees, managers, entrepreneurs and those who intend to become entrepreneurs and who have immigrated to Finland.
• Creative and cultural organisations, associations, foundations and municipalities, education and training organisations, research institutes, art and culture institutes, and other developers of working life and services together with their staff.
• Employed persons whose current skills in the creative industries need to be updated or whose continuation in working life needs to be secured. 

A more precise description of target groups is available in the call for applications (in Finnish and Swedish).

Project activities should be aimed at individual customers, and the purpose of the funding is to benefit the widest possible group.