Taike awards operational subsidies to 193 applicants

In 2024, Taike awarded 13.6 million euros in operational subsidies to 196 art communities. For this year, the call for applications for operational subsidies included new applicants transferred from the Ministry of Education and Culture, which resulted in a decrease in the proportional allocation compared to 2024.

Among the 18 new recipients of operational subsidies this year are Myyrmäen Lobbyn tuki ry, Hav-Anna Company and Dots förening för audiovisuell konst. Altogether 26 communities who have previously received operational subsidies received a negative decision. The changes affect all fields of the arts.

“Due to the cuts in appropriations, we have had to assess what kinds of operations are needed to renew Finnish art and culture and help cope with the exceptional economic situation now and in the coming years. We made strategic choices that we believe will renew the field and carry us beyond the economic recession,” says Kaisa Rönkkö, Director of Taike.

The changes in operational subsidies are based on weightings according to the application criteria, a more detailed assessment of the financial situation of applicants, and assessments based on the renewal, impact and sustainability of the actors. The application criteria were examined more closely, and communities focusing on education or recreational activities, for example, were excluded.

The financial criteria took into account excessive negative capital or the weak financial situation of the applicant, as well as excessively high self-financing by the community according to the statutory needs assessment for a discretionary government grant.

“The decisions prioritised communities that are directly involved with creating art. The funding decisions as a whole play an important role in securing the work opportunities of artists in different fields of the arts and in different parts of Finland,” says Kaisa Rönkkö.

The largest appropriations by artform were allocated to applicants in the fields of theatre, dance art, music, circus and the visual arts. By region, Uusimaa accounted for 54 percent of applications and 55 percent of awarded subsidies. The regions of Ostrobothnia, Northern Ostrobothnia, Central Finland, Pirkanmaa and Southwest Finland also accounted for multiple recipients of operational subsidies. Overall, the regional distribution of funding was largely unchanged.

Taike consulted seven national arts councils during the decision-making process. Due to the funding situation, Taike did not award any new multi-year operational subsidies, but the intention is to reassess their potential in the coming years.

Further information:

Kaisa Rönkkö, Director, [email protected], t. +358 295 330 874
Henri Terho, Head of Arts Support, [email protected], t. +358 295 330 901
 

List of the recipients: Taike's operational subsidies in 2025