Mehiläinen participates in Slush to ensure a health-safe event

25.11.2021

Press Release 25.11.2021 The international start-up and technology event Slush will be organised on 1–2 December this year at Messukeskus Helsinki, Expo and Convention Centre. This year, 8,800 people will attend the investor event, which is the largest of its kind globally during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mehiläinen is involved in ensuring the health safety of the event through COVID-19 tests and COVID-19 passports. In addition to antigen testing, Mehiläinen will produce an EU Digital COVID Certificate for participants from outside Europe.

The Regional State Administrative Agency for Southern Finland (AVI) has tightened the coronavirus restrictions on public events in the Uusimaa region. The new restrictions will enter into force on Thursday 25 November and will apply to high-risk events, such as indoor public events. As an alternative to the restrictions, an organiser of an event may introduce a COVID-19 passport.

- Last year, Slush was not organised because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, COVID-19 passports and other appropriate safety practices will allow us to organise the event again safely on site. Cooperation with Mehiläinen is important to us, as without it, visitors from outside Europe would not be able to attend the event, says Miikka Talja, CFO of Slush.

- It's great to be in Slush to ensure the health safety of the event. In addition to antigen testing, know as rapid testing, we will be able to produce an EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate in a matter of hours for non-EU citizens whose national digital COVID-19 certificate has not been accepted by the EU. The largest sampling volume of the event will be concentrated in Forum Mehiläinen, says Johanna Asklöf, Business Unit Director of Mehiläinen.

The COVID-19 passport is the EU Digital COVID Certificate, which can be downloaded from My Kanta Pages. The EU Digital COVID Certificate consists of three different certificates: a certificate of COVID vaccination, a certificate of a COVID-19 test result, and a certificate of having been infected with COVID-19. When the COVID-19 passport is introduced as an alternative to restrictions on gathering, it shall be required for the entire event. The COVID-19 passport will be checked upon arrival from persons over the age of 16.

Slush is one of Europe's leading entrepreneurial and start-up events, which aims to bring together international growth companies, investors and media, and to help entrepreneurs succeed in their industry. Slush is run mainly by volunteers from non-profit investors, entrepreneurs, students and a community of volunteers.

Picture: (C) Kai Kuusisto