The Regional Council of Ostrobothnia is one of the eighteen regional councils in Finland. We are a statutory joint municipal authority formed by the fifteen municipalities in the region of Ostrobothnia. Our aim is to build up the necessary conditions for balanced development and ecenomic growth and thereby serve the welfare of the Ostrobothnian people. The development efforts are financed both by national and EU resources. The Regional Council is the primary interest supporter of Ostrobothnia. Our most important goal is to strengthen the competitivness of the region. To reach that goal we strive to influence governmental decisions that affect the region. Our work has a strong international dimension. We are responsible for a wide range of international issues and contacts in the Nordic countries, the Baltic Sea region, the EU and Europe. Together with three regional councils in Western Finland we run the common West Finland European Office, which is the most important base for promoting our interests at EU level.