Peter Vesterbacka, a former developer of the Angry Birds online gaming franchise, believes there are significant opportunities in Malaysia's education and entertainment sectors. The Finnish entrepreneur sees potential for growth in start-up entrepreneurship within the country and is ready to explore various possibilities. Vesterbacka, who co-founded the FinEst Bay Area infrastructure project connecting Helsinki and Tallinn through a tunnel with four stations is currently on a five-day visit to Malaysia.
Vesterbacka will be meeting government officials in digital, technology development and natural resources here, in line with his global footprint of investing in people and talent. “The education development arm of the FinEst Bay Area, known as Finest Future, which I am spearheading as the co-founder, is keen to introduce Finnish education in Malaysia, starting from high school to university level, to develop talent and entrepreneurship”, Vesterbacka told Bernama in an interview recently.
"We want to create an environment for people to foster their individuality and creativity and develop their potential and this starts by learning Finnish”, he said. Finest Future is the education development arm of FinEst Bay Area. It aims to create economic growth in Finland and Estonia. It provides online learning. It facilitates, evaluates and provides certification in Finnish language proficiency for young people entering Finland’s high schools and universities starting from 15 to 16 years.
Vesterbacka noted that adapting to life in Finland is easier at a younger age. He pointed out that the World Happiness Report ranks Finland as the happiest country, highlighting that Finnish society is inclusive and does not discriminate based on age, gender, race, or religion, as it values equality.
“Finland provides a cheaper alternative compared to other countries. One can get free high school and tertiary education and only need to pay for living expenses which amounts to 6,720 euros (one euro=RM4.61) a year versus 15,000 euro or more in other western countries”, he said.
Vesterbacka mentioned that Finest Future has extended Finnish education to over 20 countries, including Uzbekistan, Africa, South America, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, and China, since its establishment four years ago. Finest Future also has offices located in Vietnam, Thailand, and Finland.
Vesterbacka emphasized that the aim is to enable young people from various countries to seek high value jobs and adapt to Finnish life. “We will also explore partnerships with international schools in Malaysia”, he said, adding that it is important to equip young people with life skills via education, particularly when developing entrepreneurship.
Vesterbacka, an investor in over 70 companies, stated that he is also investigating opportunities in artificial intelligence and sustainable sectors in Malaysia. Regarding the FinEst Bay Area infrastructure project, which includes the undersea rail tunnel between Finland and Estonia—one of the longest in the world—he noted that the legal matters are currently being handled by the Estonian authorities.
