Kokkola is a town and municipality of Finland. The town is located in the Central Ostrobothnia region. The town has a population of 47,774 and covers an area of 2,730.80 square kilometres of which 1,286.61 km2 is water. The municipality is bilingual with 84.2% being Finnish and 13.9% Swedish speakers.
Culture and sights
Kokkola provides a varying cultural offer. From rock, jazz and classical music to shows in the theatre of Kokkola in Finnish and Swedish (Catherine place/Katariinan tori). The city is the home of the world-renowned Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra, which was founded by the conductor Juha Kangas in 1972. The Orchestra performs regularly in Kokkola and makes tours in other parts of Finland and even abroad. They performed 82 times in 2012, with a total number of listeners of about 17,470. Since fall time this year, the well-known Sakari Oramo, who was also the conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, has become the new conductor of the Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra.
Buildings
The area of old wooden houses in the downtown area of Neristan has been the setting for the life and livelihood of its inhabitants for hundreds of years. Today these houses are offering restaurants, cafés, little shops and even accommodation for tourists. With its old charm it invites visitors to discover Neristan step by step.
Tankar island, a lighthouse island, is in the outer archipelago, about 18 km (11 mi) northwest from Kokkola. The island houses a lighthouse which is still in use today, a museum of seal-hunting, a bird-watching tower, a lot of nature trails and even accommodations for tourists. It is easy to reach the island by ferry m/s Jenny from Kokkola.
The stone Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Kaarlela has been a landmark since 1550 and is a popular venue for weddings and concerts. Next to the church, there is a local history museum at Kirkonmäki with an Ostrobothnian farmhouse, as well as an old smithy, a tannery, a wool-carding workshop, a threshing barn, a smoke sauna, a granary barn and a loft.
K.H.Renlund Museum is devoted to Karl Herman Renlund, who donated his large art collection to the town of Kokkola. The museum houses some temporary exhibitions and the museum shop. Next to the museum is the Pedagogio, a school-house, which is Finland’s oldest urban secular wooden building (built in 1696). In this quarter, there is also the Lassander House which offers a glimpse into a merchant home in the 18th century.
Food culture
In the 1980s, Kokkola’s parish dish was called kievari kuupano , or potato porridge , which has pork and beef placed in a pit of mashed potatoes , decorated with peas. Other pastry dishes were gravita whitefish, Kokkola gingerbread and crab , ie comb pastries fried in fat.
Education
Kokkola has a lot of preschools, some of them offer children a bilingual education from an early age. There are 25 Finnish-speaking and 8 Swedish-speaking schools. Moreover, there are three secondary schools for Finnish-speaking pupils and one for Swedish-speaking. Some schools offer a dual vocational education and training. The Chydenius-Institution of Kokkola, a university consortium, carries out teaching and research under the auspices of the universities of Jyväskylä, Oulu and Vaasa. It is specialized in adult education. For Finnish and foreign students it arranges open university studies, further education for professionals in the fields of education, social services and health services and management. Centria University of Applied Sciences is also situated in Kokkola having its other partition in Ylivieska and Jakobstad is an international institute offering three different bachelor’s degree program in English language along with Finnish.
Economy
Kokkola is the capital and biggest city in the region of Central Ostrobothnia. The chemical industry is a major employer. An industrial area and the city’s port are located in Ykspihlaja. OMG has a cobalt plant. The Freeport/Umicore refinery is the only large cobalt refinery outside China. Boliden has a zinc plant. Kemira, a chemical conglomerate, built an industrial park that is now divided among several corporations. In addition, industries represented in the town include metalworking, casting, textiles, plastics, food and carpentry. Largest employers are as follows (2011):
- The city of Kokkola approx. 2.350
- Central Ostrobothnian Joint Municipal Authority for Social and Health Services (Soite) 2.500
- Boliden Kokkola Oy (zinc) 500
- Umicore (was Freeport Cobalt Oy until 2019) (cobalt) 420
- KPO group (retail) 400
- Halpa-Halli (retail) 300
- CABB Oy (fine chemicals) 200
The Port of Kokkola is located in Ykspihlaja, approximately 5 km (3 mi) from the city center, and it is one of the busiest ports in Finland. Oil, ore and limestone are imported, refined products and timber are exported, and iron ore is transited.
