The tenth EU Funding Report for Southwest Finland confirms that the region continues to perform well in securing EU funding. Although the total was somewhat lower than in the two preceding years, annual EU funding received during the current programming period (2021\u20132027) has remained close to EUR 50 million. The average for 2021\u20132025 stands at EUR 52.9 million. Annual fluctuations are largely explained by success in obtaining funding from the EU\u2019s highly competitive centrally managed programmes and by the overall volume of funding available.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is encouraging that Southwest Finland\u2019s funding level during this programming period remains clearly higher than during the previous one. Competition for EU funding has intensified, which is also reflected in the decline in funding received from centrally managed programmes. One factor behind the growing competition is believed to be the increasing use of artificial intelligence. However, the region has strong expertise in securing external funding, and I am confident that we will continue to succeed in the future,\u201d says Saara Nuotio-Coulon, Head of the Turku-Southwest Finland EU Office.<\/p>\n
Compared with previous years, however, the total number of projects in Southwest Finland has continued to increase steadily. The main reason for this growth is the higher number of LEADER projects. Calls for project and business support opened gradually in 2023, meaning that all project types available through LEADER groups have become eligible for funding in phases.<\/p>\n
As in previous years, most EU funding received by Southwest Finland came from the EU\u2019s centrally managed programmes. In 2025, 64% of all EU funding awarded to the region originated from these programmes, amounting to nearly EUR 30.5 million. Funding from centrally managed programmes is highly competitive, and the European Commission awards support only to the highest-quality projects according to the rules of each programme.<\/p>\n
The most important centrally managed programme for Southwest Finland is Horizon Europe, the EU\u2019s research and innovation framework programme. Projects launched in the region under Horizon Europe during 2025 attracted almost EUR 18.9 million in funding.<\/p>\n
Measured by number of projects, the largest share of support (64%) was allocated through the Rural Development Fund. In total, EUR 3.3 million was granted to 343 projects.<\/p>\n
As in previous years, higher education institutions in Southwest Finland benefited most from EU funding in monetary terms. In 2025, they accounted for more than 60% of all funding received, amounting to approximately EUR 29 million. The single largest beneficiary was the University of Turku, which secured EUR 14 million in funding from seven different programmes for 20 projects.<\/p>\n
In terms of the number of beneficiaries, the business sector accounted for the largest share.<\/p>\n
In addition to higher education institutions, the ten largest beneficiaries included the City of Turku, Business Turku and Vamos Turku, as well as several regional companies: Brinter AM Technologies Oy, Brighthouse Intelligence LTD and Montinutra Oy.<\/p>\n
Among the ten largest projects were six Horizon Europe projects, two Erasmus+ projects and two European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) projects.<\/p>\n
EU funding received by Southwest Finland has been monitored since 2016 through annual EU Funding Reports. The report covering 2025 is the tenth edition. The reports for 2016\u20132018 were prepared by the Regional Council of Southwest Finland, while since 2019 responsibility has rested with the Turku-Southwest Finland European Office.<\/p>\n
The report covers EU regional development funding (the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund), the Rural Development Fund, Interreg territorial cooperation programmes and centrally managed EU programmes for which funding is applied directly from the European Commission. Direct agricultural payments are not included, nor is funding received through the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility.<\/p>\n
The report examines projects in which a Southwest Finland organisation participates either as a coordinator or a project partner. Consequently, projects that benefit the region but do not allocate funding directly to organisations in Southwest Finland are not included.<\/p>\n
The report data were collected by Santeri Harinko, an intern at the European Office in spring 2026, and compiled by EU Specialist Inka Laaksonen. Information was gathered from open databases and through email enquiries. For the funding programmes included in the review, information was obtained on nearly all projects launched in 2025.<\/p>\n
Although the report is not fully comprehensive, it provides a reliable overview of the scale of EU project funding in Southwest Finland, the organisations benefiting from EU support, and the range of project activities being implemented.<\/p>\n