The preparation of the City of Rauma’s financial programme officially began when the management group met for the first time on Thursday 1 February. In addition to organisational matters, the agenda included the financial programme project plan and the communication plan, which will now go to the City Board. The city council decided last November to draw up an economic programme and committed to bringing it to the decision-making process during 2024.
A step-by-step preparation process
The aim of the budget programme is to adjust activities, structures and resources to ensure sustainable finances in the long term. The programme consists of a series of measures and reforms, which will be phased into preparation and decision-making.
– We are not now preparing a single big package of financial programmes to be adopted all at once, but will work on a thematic basis. The contents are prepared by the divisions and will be submitted to the committees, the City Board or the City Council for decision on their own,” says Mayor Esko Poikela.
– The City Board has directed that the preparation of the school network plan will proceed as a separate process from the preparation of the financial programme. However, the financial implications of the school network reform will be combined with the overall economic review in due course,” says Henri Seppänen, Director of Finance.
A new type of management group
The management group that guides the work on the economic programme is different from the usual one in that it consists of half decision-makers and half civil servants. The members are Sari Pettersson, Heidi Hiljanen, Mika Korteniemi and Sauli Ahvenjärvi. The management group is chaired by the mayor. The other officials are the heads of department and the Director of Finance.
The management group’s role is to ensure that the programming process is progressing smoothly, that the measures are in line with the urban strategy, that they are sufficiently effective and that the preparation process is transparent.
The progress of the financial programme will be presented to the Cooperation Committee and then to the City Council.
The launch of the financial programme has been communicated today, 5 February, to staff and elected representatives of the whole city group. Regular updates on the progress of the programme will be provided. The city has set up a dedicated website for the programme at rauma.fi/talousohjelma.