Helsinki had a clear interest in promoting itself as a place to do business and invest at the Shanghai World Expo, Mayor of Helsinki Jussi Pajunen said.

"Shanghai Expo 2010 will be the biggest event ever organized. Virtually the whole world will be assembled in one location for the duration of the World Expo, so this is really something very unique," Pajunen said during an interview with Helsinki Times.

Finland has invested heavily in its presence at the Expo, which will open Saturday, because it considers China a major partner in the country's future growth.

The global focus point was shifting towards Asia and especially China, a fact Helsinki could not ignore, Pajunen said.

Dozens of companies and organizations from Finland are participating in the event. "The Helsinki Metropolitan Area is one of the national partners in the Expo organization," he said.

"The Shanghai Expo will be a great platform for marketing Helsinki as the World Design Capital of 2012. The Finnish Pavilion, Kirnu, is already in itself a manifestation of Finnish design and its basic components, stemming from the fundamental values of the Nordic welfare society," he said.

The mayor said the Expo theme, "Better City, Better Life", described the global process that accentuated local authorities and major cities.

"The story of Kirnu, the Finnish Pavilion, is also the story of Finland," he said. "The story of a small, northern country's struggle against the forces of nature and the challenges of history that, in the long run, has turned out to be quite a success."

(Xinhua News Agency April 30, 2010)