The Council of Oulu Region is a regional development and planning organization acting on behalf of its member municipalities, and coordinating EU funding programs in the region. Lobbying for the Oulu region and representing it in both national and international projects, programs and working groups are part of the main role as a regional authority.
The Council of Oulu region has two main decision making bodies. The Assembly of the Regional Council holds 75 seats representing all the region´s municipalities in relation to their population, and the Board of the Regional Council is in charge of implementing the assembly´s decisions and directing the administration of the region. Both the Assembly and Board´s members are chosen according to the proportion of votes political parties received in local elections in the region.
The Council of Oulu Region has few other formal bodies, namely the Auditing Committee yearly inspecting the actions of the administration in cooperation with the professional auditors, and the Regional Management committee for EU programs, which favours or objects the funding of projects in the region. Additional permanent or temporary working groups and committees exist, but are mainly administrative and attended by personnel of the bureau.
The Bureau of the Council of Oulu Region is directed by the Region Mayor and consists of three departments:
- Administration
- Regional planning and competence
- Regional development and funding
Region Mayor Jussi Rämet
