Jobs, know-how and training with Finnpartnership's support 

Finnpartnership is a business partnership programme, which is financed by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and operated by Finnfund. Finnpartnership offers financial support and advisory services for Finnish companies and other organisations planning commercially viable projects in developing countries.

Finnpartnership’s services aim to increase commercial cooperation between companies in Finland and those in developing countries, to promote imports from developing countries, to stimulate their economic growth, to diversify their production and export structures and otherwise foster their development.

Business Partnership Support and new partners

Business Partnership Support is available for researching business opportunities, identifying business partners, training employees of the partner, providing expert services for capacity building, and importing from a developing country. Support can also be granted for vocational education and training and support for local education, and demonstrating or piloting technology and solutions, even for projects by the international organisations. Also non-governmental organisations can apply for grant for supporting activities.

Finnpartnership’s Matchmaking service helps companies in developing countries in the search of business partners and cooperation opportunities from Finland.

Finnpartnership organises monthly application workshops in Helsinki offering information on its financing, other services and international financing opportunities.

Concrete results from projects

In 2016 Finnpartnership received 162 new applications for Business Partnership Support. In accordance with the processing cycle, 163 applications were processed in 2017, of which 121 received support in total of 5,4 million euros.

Most of the Business Partnership Support went to lower-income countries. Of all Business Partnership Support granted in 2017, 31 percent of funding and 34 percent of approved projects were directed to least developed countries (10 percent and 16 percent respectively in 2016). Detailed information is available in Finnpartnership’s annual report.

In 2017, Finnpartnership analysed the impact of Business Partnership Support projects approved in 2013. The analysis is based on final follow-up reports submitted by Support recipients. From the projects approved in 2013, 55 were paid Support to the total amount of 1,2 million euros. 36 percent of the projects were reported to have succeeded. In addition to this, 24 percent were still ongoing with the possibility of becoming successful. The total amount of investments in the target countries was 7 million euros. The companies have employed a total of 960 people. Training was conducted in 58 percent of the projects, and 60 percent of the projects carried positive environmental effects.

Matchmaking service connects companies in Finland and developing countries

In 2017 Finnpartnership provided service to 230 Matchmaking companies from developing countries. During the year, 127 applications were registered to the matchmaking database, and 103 companies from developing countries were connected directly with a Finnish company. As a result, 88 follow-up discussions between companies have been initiated. 

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