Nearly three years after former Prime Minister Andrus Ansip became European Commission vice-president in charge of digital affairs, Estonia has assumed the rotating presidency of the European Union for the next six months. A period in which the spotlight will be on this country of 1.3 million inhabitants, highly advanced in digital technology, an area that has brought it out of a major economic crisis in just over a decade.
The country has made access to the Internet a fundamental right, giving access to the network to all its inhabitants, throughout the territory. Estonia has thus simplified its administration and reduced its costs. It attracts foreign entrepreneurs, has reduced its unemployment rate, and improved its education system to the point of being at the forefront of the Pisa (International Program for Tracking Achievement) report. So many skills and experiences that could help accelerate the European digital agenda in the digital single market and address the protection of private data.
During a press conference in the capital, Tallinn, on the occasion of the start of the Estonian presidency, the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, admitted that he did not yet have a mobile phone. Hearing this, Estonian Prime Minister Jüri Ratas could only smile, perhaps remembering that in order to invite Juncker to Tallinn, he had to send a letter, as was done in the past.
Internet, a fundamental right
Since 2005, the Internet has been accessible throughout Estonia. Even in the forests, according to the Estonian Embassy in France, so that the entire population can carry out their administrative procedures, or obtain information. In this highly connected country there are 120 smartphones for every 100 inhabitants. On the first day of school, each student receives one with her school books.
The land of digital citizenship
All Estonians over the age of 15 have a digital identity card. A measure adopted in 2002 to allow everyone to study, find out, consume, communicate and even vote in the presidential elections… More than a thousand services have been created, thus replacing paperwork, queues and complex administrative procedures. It is even possible to pay for public services, such as parking spaces, by SMS.
e-Resident, a status for foreign entrepreneurs
Digitization was not only done to improve the lives of Estonians. It also aims to attract entrepreneurs from all over the planet with the e-resident status that was created in 2014. This card, which costs 100 euros, allows you to obtain a digital identity without living in the country. It is certified by a biometrics and digital signature system to create a business through the Internet anywhere on the planet. With this sesame, an entrepreneur can solve all the administrative procedures to create a business in less than twenty minutes and manage it anywhere on the planet. But in addition, you will be able to benefit from a 20% tax on the profits that have earned the country to be considered a tax haven 2.0. The Estonian government’s goal is to attract 10 million entrepreneurs in 10 years, that is, ten times more than the population. At the end of 2016, 13,000 people acquired this card.
A digital e-embassy in Luxembourg
In 2018 Estonia will be the first country in the world to have an electronic embassy. Installed in Luxembourg, it is actually a data center that will host private data and will be installed in the Grand Duchy, but subject to Estonian law. The idea is to protect Estonia from possible cyberattacks that would hit it very hard. This idea was put into practice as early as 2008 after cyberattacks which, according to the Estonian government, were carried out by Russia. According to the Quartz site, Estonia has implemented this strategy to deal with the possible invasion of a foreign power that would like to seize national data. Therefore, a backup copy of this information will be made in real time in the territory of Luxembourg without the authorities of the Grand Duchy having control of it.
Digital at the heart of the education system
HE pisa classification published last year made some countries tremble and others smile. Out of 70 countries, Estonia was at the top of the ranking (9th in mathematics, 3rd in science and 6th in reading). During a conference at the Estonian Embassy in Paris, Mart Laidmets, Undersecretary General for General and Vocational Education, explained that the key to academic success lies in digital technology. Not only by mastering the computer code, but “giving access to knowledge to all, regardless of the social or geographical origin of the inhabitants.” Starting in 1997, all the schools were connected and all the teachers were trained. Each year, at the end of the school year, students, teachers, and parents complete an online wellness questionnaire to improve the system the following year.
Source: BFM TV
