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The Umea Region

The Umea Region is a functional region, i.e. it is one labour market where we work, live and spend our time off. We commute a lot every day, around 5 000 people commute every day to and from jobs and houses.  There is a maximum of 45 minutes by car from Umeå to the other municipal centres.

We have a lot of leisure time activities in the region. We play golf, go fishing, go skiing -  both cross-country and down-hill, go snowmobiling, we go to the opera, theatres and cinemas.
 
Mutual agreement in 1993 - regional development
In 1993 the six municipalities made a mutual agreement saying that:

• Positive development for one municipality is a positive development for all
• Establishment of new companies should be done without conflicts
• Job opportunities should be spread throughout the region
• Increased freedom of choice and better service to inhabitants
• Joint development strategies

Aims
The aims of the organisation The Umea Region are:

• Better efficiency in the public sector through co-ordination
• Work together for development of the region
• The organization must be based upon democratic principals

Organization
The council of the region meet four times a year and consists of the local government commissioners. They set up the strategic plans of the Umea Region. The heads of the municipalities are the operative steering committee and meet once a month. The administrative director prepares the agendas, carries out decisions are responsible for the finances and the administration. There are 17 committees, in which representatives from every municipality by activity sit.

The committees are:

• Culture
• Library
• Business
• Education
• Technique
• Planning
• Tourism
• Staff
• IT
• Care of the aged and the disabled
• Environment
• Communications
• Recreations
• Procurement
• Gender
• Waste/mud
• Information

The six municipalities have joint EU-projects. Those are:

• UME&Co - development of the tourism sector
• City and County - local development
• Library 2007 - increased access to the libraries, joint library ticket
• The Grow Alliance/The train road Botniabanan as a growth factor - growth project within the region

Financing
The Umea Region is financed by a fixed fee and a variable fee based on the number of inhabitants in the municipality. The annual budget is 1 500 000 SEK.
 
What have we achieved?
We have a climate of mutual trust and an open and frank dialogue. The co-operation is firmly established and not effected by changes in personnel. There is an exchange of knowledge and experience between politicians and public officials. We have realized the following projects:

• Joint salary system
• Joint leadership within the rescue service
• Joint organization of tourism
• Joint planning of upper secondary schools
• Joint switchboard
• Joint IT-platform
• Joint library

Future
In the future we will have more joint projects, e.g. joint salary system. We will continue work on the joint regional identity and profile, internationalisation.
 
Co-operation demands patience and innovative solutions! It takes time to develop co-operation. Endurance and innovative thinking are keywords for achieving long-term results!
 
You are welcome to contact coordinator Lisa Lindberg if you need more information about the Umea Region,
phone: +46 (0)90 16 13 32 or +46 (0)70 644 95 92.