Düsseldorf, June 15, 2009 – Nokia, the North Rhine-Westphalian Federal State Government (NRW) and the City of Bochum today signed the contract for the “Growth for Bochum” program. By signing the contract, the partners of the program defined how they will allocate funds to help stimulate new investment and create long-term opportunities in Bochum and the surrounding area.
The ultimate goal of “Growth for Bochum” is to accelerate the structural change of the Bochum region’s economy. The program is capitalized with approximately EUR 53 million and will support around 30 projects, with an emphasis on the health care sector, youth development and education.
Notable projects supported by the program include a center of excellence for patient-oriented drug distribution, a forum for engineering projects, an initiative designed to help secondary school students succeed in landing apprenticeships, and a ‘summer school’ for third graders. The ‘summer school’ will help the children to improve their knowledge of the German language and develop their social skills, which can better equip them to take on the challenges of the job market they will face in later life as well as empower them to lead more independent lives.
Other projects supported by “Growth for Bochum” cover IT technology, energy, environmental technology and engineering, and infrastructure – as well as entrepreneurship in the broader technology sector. In these areas, the program is supporting:
· business start-ups – in particular spin-offs by scientists working in academia – and the development and growth of new companies in the Bochum region that can create sustainable jobs.
· companies planning to invest in the Bochum region which offer new long-term job opportunities for employees affected by the closure of Nokia’s production facility in Bochum.
For example, one project receiving backing intends to establish a site where start-ups operating in the area of geothermal energy and energy-efficient building design can locate their businesses.
The “Growth for Bochum” program was initiated by Nokia, NRW and the City of Bochum on the basis of a Memorandum of Understanding following Nokia´s decision to close its Bochum production site. Since then, much has already been achieved and decisive milestones have been reached. For instance, an international campaign to attract suitable investors that can create long-term job opportunities in Bochum and the surrounding region has been developed. Moreover, a buyer for Nokia’s facilities in Bochum has already been found in Thelen group, the real estate company. Thelen group is establishing a business park on the site that will also create new job opportunities.
Today’s signing of the contract further strengthens the cooperation between the three partners.
“More than a year ago we underlined our wish as a responsible business to cooperate with the federal state government and the City of Bochum in finding ways to support the region,” said Kristian Pullola, Vice President Treasury at Nokia and head of the “Growth for Bochum” team at Nokia. “The signing of the contract is a solid basis for sustainable growth and sustainable jobs as the city and surrounding area undergo structural change. This program is all the more important given the challenging economic conditions affecting the Bochum region today. We are delighted that the program will promote youth development and education.”
Christa Thoben, Minister for Economic Affairs of the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia, said: “By signing this contract, Nokia, the federal state government and the City of Bochum are committing to work together to support sustainable employment in Bochum. We are delighted that the ‘Growth for Bochum’ program will support the IT-area, as well as engineering activities, education projects and the health care market. For us the health care market is an essential cornerstone of the structural change. A number of projects of the ‘Growth for Bochum’ program are a perfect addition to the planning of the health care campus.”
Michael Bueltmann, a member of the management board of Nokia Deutschland, said he is pleased with the variety of projects sponsored by the “Growth for Bochum” program: “Obviously the program is receiving plenty of recognition. We could identify projects in a lot of future industries, which we considered worthwhile supporting; we appreciate in particular that support will be given to projects in youth development and education like the so called ‘summer school’ for third-graders to improve their language and social skills, and the secondary schools initiative to help students improve their chances when applying for apprenticeships.”
The City of Bochum also welcomes the conclusion of the contract which ensures that the three partners create a long-term reliable contractual basis for the “Growth for Bochum” program. “The signing of the contract demonstrates that Nokia and the North Rhine-Westphalian Federal State Government are determined to help create the conditions necessary for Bochum to move ahead with the economic development. The first investments facilitated by the program, such as the project forum for engineering, help the city and the region in this regard,” said Dr. Ottilie Scholz, the Mayor of Bochum.