Tampere City Group and CEB sign €60 million loan to improve municipal services for growing population

Tampere/Paris - The Governor of the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB), Rolf Wenzel, and the Director of Tampere City Group, Juha Yli-Rajala, today signed a €60 million framework loan agreement to finance the construction, restoration and extension of municipal infrastructure in the City of Tampere, Finland.

The loan will help the municipal authorities to deal with the recent population growth and demographic changes, and to improve their services and plan investments accordingly.

Since the start of its cooperation with the CEB in 2016, the City of Tampere has gained 12,000 additional inhabitants. Its current population stands at more than 242,000, out of which eight per cent has foreign background.

In light of the negative impact of COVID-19 on municipal finances, the new loan will provide the necessary boost to public investments and allow the city authorities to focus on sustainable reconstruction in the wake of the pandemic.

"The CEB is committed to assisting the municipal authorities in their efforts to make Tampere a city that responds well to the social needs of its growing and diverse population," said Governor Wenzel. "Furthermore, the loan is in line with Tampere's strategy to transform itself into a carbon neutral city with smart and sustainable urban development by 2030."

This is the Bank's third loan to the City of Tampere, bringing the total amount to €180 million. The previous two loans worth €60 million each were disbursed in December 2019 and November 2020.

The final beneficiaries will be wide-ranging, including pre-school and school children, healthcare patients and staff, young families, the elderly, and those practicing sports.

"The CEB's additional financing will ensure the continuity, scope and objectives of Tampere's 2021-2024 investment programme as a whole and those of individual sub-projects. That includes the renovation of Olkahinen school and day care, the construction of Kanjoni new day care center and school, the continuation of works on sports centers across the city."

The CEB is also supporting the Tampere authorities to increase the stock of student housing with a 10.3 million loan to Pirkan Opiskelija-asunnot (POAS) that was approved in August 2020 and will be completed by the end of 2021.

While in Tampere, the Bank's delegation met the CEO of POAS, Timo Jokinen, and visited the CEB-financed Kalevan Stara project, which will create additional 55 dwellings for students and young specialists.

The delegation also met the Mayor of Tampere, Anna-Kaisa Ikonen, to discuss developments in the city and cooperation with the CEB.

Set up in 1956, the CEB (Council of Europe Development Bank) has 42 member states. Twenty-two Central, Eastern and South Eastern European countries, forming the Bank's target countries, are listed among the member states. As a major instrument of the policy of solidarity in Europe, the Bank finances social projects by making available resources raised in conditions reflecting the quality of its rating (Aa1 with Moody's, outlook stable, AAA with Standard & Poor's, outlook stable, AA+ with Fitch Ratings, outlook positive and AAA* with Scope Ratings, outlook stable). It thus grants loans to its member states, and to financial institutions and local authorities in its member states for the financing of projects in the social sector, in accordance with its Articles of Agreement.
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