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social cohesion, and on the other, to the potential threat of an external attack. In Estonia and Finland, there is strong support for the conscription of young men. However, conscription was eliminated in Latvia in 2008 based on the lack of public support for it. In addition to providing young men with military training, conscription is also seen as important for socialisation and the acquisition of skills for coping in physically difficult and critical conditions. A secure society relies on the awareness of the people and their trust in the states. A heightened sense of danger and uncertain outlooks for the future promote conflict and increase the insecurity of the society. One of the guarantees of security is definitely the internal social balance and resilience of a society. In addition to strengthening the internal security of the state, social cohesion and public spiritedness also ensures the preparedness of the people to defend the state in case of military attack. 2.9.3 Positive Peace Index In 2012, the Institute for Economics and Peace developed an index of positive peacefulness (Positive Peace Index), which leaves out all the direct risk factors. The Positive Peace Index (PPI) includes the traits that characterise the attitudes of the population and the strength of the institutions, which the authors believe reflect the capabilities and readiness of the states to ensure a peaceful society. These traits are combined into eight Pillars of Peace, which the authors believe contrast the very popular “conflict-study” approach, which is focused, not on peace, but on factors related to violence and conflicts. These eight Pillars of Peace include a sound business environment, well-functioning government, equitable distribution of resources, free flow of information, low levels of corruption, acceptance of the rights of others, high levels of education, and good relations with neighbouring states. The indicators that show the stability and peacefulness of these domestic and foreign policy processes enable a prognosis to be made of how stable and peaceful the developments in the state are, and how securely the citizens may view their future. 2.9.4 Estonia’s potential for developing into highly peaceful and resilient society By juxtaposing the Global Peace Index, which deals primarily with the strengths of the internal and external threats, with the Positive Peace Index, which summarises the strengths of stability and functionality, the creators of the peace indices have characterised the difference between the two as the state’s unused (+) or missing (-) resources for coping with tensions and conflicts, and the potential for building and maintaining a peaceful, stable and secure society. If we compare Estonia to the reference states from this point of view, we see that Estonia is a Figure 2.9.1 Defence expenditures of Estonia and the reference states Percentage 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Israel Singapore South Korea Taiwan Poland Chile Estonia Slovenia Finland Denmark Netherlands Czech Republic Slovakia Canada New Zealand Uruguay Hungary Switzerland Austria Ireland Costa Rica Percentage 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Source: The Military Balance 2012 society with a relatively large reserve of unused opportunities for security. When analysing the ranking of the reference states in the table, we see that Estonia is characterised by great developmental potential in comparison to the other successful small states. This is demonstrated by the large difference between the modest level of achieved security (41 st place in the GPI) and the preconditions for stable and secure development (21 st in the PPI 21). From the table we can see that compared to the reference states, Estonia’s strengths include the free flow of information, high levels of education and relatively well-functioning government, but when compared to more successful examples, the weaknesses are related to the equitable distribution of resources and the levels related to justice, the business environment, good neighbourliness and corruption. In conclusion, we can state that it would be feasible for Estonia to become a state that provides one of the most secure living environments, similarly to the Nordic countries. The key issue is the need to reduce the tensions resulting from the inequity of opportunities and ethnic heterogeneity of the population, and to get past the constant stress that is caused by the insecurity related to our large neighbour. References 1. IEP (2010). Peace, Wealth and Human Potential. Discussion Paper 2010. Institute for Economics and Peace. 2. http://economicsandpeace.org/wp-content/ uploads/2011/09/2010-GPI-Discussion-Paper.pdf 102 Estonian Human Development Report 2012/2013
3. IEP (2011). Structures of Peace. Institute for Economics and Peace. 4. http://economicsandpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/ Structures-of-Peace.pdf 5. IEP (2012). Institute for Economics and Peace. Global Peace Index 2012. http://www.visionofhumanity.org/globalpeaceindex/2012-gpi-findings/ 6. The Military Balance 2012; Published by Routledge for The International Institute for Strategic Studies. London 2012, 504 p 7. The Global Militarization Index (GMI), Bonn International Centre for Conversion, Occasional Paper February 2011, http:// www.bicc.de/publications/publicationpage/publication/the-global-militarization-index-gmi-use-of-the-gmi-for-evaluating-the-development-orientation-of/ Summary Marju Lauristin In this chapter, with the help of international comparisons, we have tried to clarify, how successful has been Estonia’s national development looking from the international perspective at the quality of its institutions which should guarantee implementation of democratic rule of law, create a secure living environment for the population and the conditions for the free and active participation in public life. To make sure that the assessment is realistic, it is necessary to consider the achievements of the last twenty years of independence as well as the problems that still await solution. The achievements can be seen more clearly by casting a glance at the past, when, together with the other nations that were freed from the oppression of communist regimes, we started to search for a path that would lead to the establishment of a democratic and sustainable society. In comparison to the parts of the former Soviet empire that are located to the east and south of us, the new European Union Member States have all been successful as transition countries. It is gratifying that, when we compare ourselves to them based on various indices, we receive confirmation of the relatively high capability of the Estonian state to ensure democracy, security and freedom. As a result of our analysis, we can state that Estonian society has reached a level of social development, where the institutional mechanisms necessary for democratic rule of law are sufficiently secure and function relatively well. The comparison of Estonia with the reference states clearly showed that Estonia is at the forefront in regard to many areas of life and social organisation, but qualitatively, it is still relegated to the second league, compared to the European ‘old democracies’ which had enjoyed more comprehensive development. Estonia’s strengths include the stable functioning of democratic institutions, relatively well-functioning rule of law, and a fairly secure, non-violent and open environment, which promotes individual self- realisation, as well as the functioning of businesses and civil society organisations. Estonia’s privilege is good access to public information and unrestricted freedom of expression in both traditional and new media. The signs of success in fields such as the containment of corruption and crime, and an increased sense of security are gratifying. However, the same worrying signs are repeated in all the generalisations based on various indicators that can summarised as follows: the legal, institutional and technological infrastructure is strong and relatively well-constructed, but the content that has developed in this framework – the way these institutions function – does not correspond to people’s expectations and demands. At the same time, there is no reason to be satisfied with the level of participation in public life, the activities of civil organisation, or the level of tolerance concerning minorities and their readiness to contribute to the quality of the society. Therefore, the key issue is not the lack of institutions, but their quality. Having formally exited the status of post-Communist transition country, there is still plenty of room for improvement in Estonia’s political culture, trustworthiness of the state’s institutions, and the will of the citizens to participate before we arrive in the leading group of the world’s democratic states. In the course of the global economic crisis, the ability of the states to quickly and effectively find a way out of critical situations and maintain social stability became very important. The economic crisis put all the states – both large and small – to the test. Many people assumed that the new democracies, whose economies and organisation of government are still on weak legs, would suffer the most. It has now become clear that the resilience of the states was not based on the length of their traditions, their affiliation with Western or Eastern Europe, or the formal level of wealth measured by GDP per capita. The ability of the society to endure sudden changes and adapt quickly to the requirements of a harsher environment are based on public trust, on the belief of the legitimacy of the state’s institutions, on acting in a way that considers the public interest, on shared values and attitudes, and on common national accountability. And there is more of this social capital in a society that is cohesive, corruption-free and secure, and takes the interests of all its members into account. The resilience of Estonia society has stood up well to the tribulations of the economic crisis, and proven the advantages of small states to the world: greater tenacity and the ability to react quickly. However, the crisis has also shown how quickly the success stories of some countries can turn into declines. The danger signs for Estonia are the downward trend related to trust in the state’s institutions, a perception of corruption and disagreement with the state’s path of development, which has occurred during the last two years. Taking a comparative look at our neighbours in the west and north, and matching our development opportunities with their templates, we see that Estonia is gradually approaching the balanced development model of the Nordic countries. However, we lag just as far behind when it comes to the fundamental functioning of the democratic rule of law, as we do in the level of our material wellbeing. Still, there is reason to state that the accomplishments realised during the building of the Estonian state and the increased will of the people to participate have created rather good preconditions for reducing this gap. Estonian Human Development Report 2012/2013 103
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ESTONIAN HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT 2
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Table of Contents 1 Human Capital /
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Dear Reader Since the moment when E
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1Human Capital Estonian Human Devel
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the HDI’s content has also been h
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Figure 1.1.1 The human development
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Figure 1.1.7 The income sub-index:
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The results of the Princeton Projec
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the hypothetical generation. The to
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Figure 1.2.3 Life expectancy. Eston
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Table 1.2.2 also presents the most
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The new trends that are appearing i
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Figure 1.2.8 Components of populati
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New features were introduced into E
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Initiation of Voluntary Birth Contr
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Table 1.3.1 Best-known educational
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(OECD 2012b). Therefore a certain r
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The reciprocal dependence of the pr
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Figure 1.3.8 Percentage of students
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Table 1.3.4 The quality of educatio
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1.4 Health Raul-Allan Kiivet Change
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Table 1.4.1 Usage of prescription m
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allude to the fact that approximate
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promote healthy lifestyles among th
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Figure 1.5.1 The World Values Surve
Page 53 and 54: Table 1.5.2 Estonia’s participati
Page 55 and 56: Figure 1.5.3 The percentage of the
Page 57 and 58: Figure 1.5.5 Percentage of the Esto
Page 59 and 60: The fact that Estonia’s position
Page 61 and 62: Summary Mati Heidmets The global vi
Page 63 and 64: 2People and Society Estonian Human
Page 65 and 66: Table 2.1.1 Structure of the Bertel
Page 67 and 68: tioning market economies (15 states
Page 69 and 70: 2.2 Freedom and democracy Martin M
Page 71 and 72: Table 2.2.1 Democracy indicators Po
Page 73 and 74: Figure 2.2.2 The distribution of th
Page 75 and 76: would be something that none of the
Page 77 and 78: political participation are general
Page 79 and 80: strongest, while a very small perce
Page 81 and 82: is concerned, Estonia is one of the
Page 83 and 84: Figure 2.4.2 Average circulation of
Page 85 and 86: 2.5 Corruption Jüri Saar In accord
Page 87 and 88: Lithuania, 61%; and in Russia, 69%.
Page 89 and 90: 2.6.2 Intentional homicides in Esto
Page 91 and 92: crime. And thirdly, there was a wis
Page 93 and 94: References 1. Ahven, A. & Tabur, L.
Page 95 and 96: states included in the EU Kids Onli
Page 97 and 98: 2.8 Public assessments of the state
Page 99 and 100: Figure 2.8.4 Changes releated to tr
Page 101 and 102: of the state’s development are en
Page 103: Table 2.9.1 The positions of Estoni
Page 107 and 108: 3Welfare and the Quality of Life Es
Page 109 and 110: choices made, not what people say t
Page 111 and 112: Figure 3.1.5 Public social spending
Page 113 and 114: tion agreed upon the social contrac
Page 115 and 116: References 1. Aidukaite, J. (2006).
Page 117 and 118: hand, to the “inequality of acces
Page 119 and 120: and explanations of the extent of i
Page 121 and 122: 5- much more than I deserve. Some d
Page 123 and 124: people in Estonia consider the inco
Page 125 and 126: Table 3.3.1 Experienced Well-Being
Page 127 and 128: at about 70%. In Latvia and Lithuan
Page 129 and 130: sign. It seems that the usual view
Page 131 and 132: 3.4 Quality of life Anu Toots 3.4.1
Page 133 and 134: a uniform composite indicator has n
Page 135 and 136: 3.4.6 The components of life qualit
Page 137 and 138: Figure 3.4.4c Perceived quality of
Page 139 and 140: Figure 3.4.5 Changes in the depriva
Page 141 and 142: 3.5 Environment dimension of well-b
Page 143 and 144: Figure 3.5.1.b Estonia’s position
Page 145 and 146: 3.5.4 Energy intensity The energy i
Page 147 and 148: productivity, which is defined as t
Page 149 and 150: perceive themselves as worse off th
Page 151 and 152: 4The Economy Estonian Human Develop
Page 153 and 154: vide a valuable connection for maki
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Figure 4.1.3 Components of economic
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ule of law, the sub-indicators for
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References 1. Acemoglu, D.; Robinso
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Development Report employs generali
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and pasture land, and this was capi
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Basing the total and net savings re
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4.3 Labour market Reelika Leetmaa,
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The problems include the very limit
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• Expenditures for active labour
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who lose their jobs. These ensure i
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4.4 Productivity and the economic s
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labour costs at the company level r
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Table 4.4.4 Comparison of the produ
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Figure 4.4.1 Annual average increas
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4.5 Innovation Erik Terk, Katrin M
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Table 4.5.2 Comparison of innovatio
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Table 4.5.4 Comparison of the indic
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in order to make the R&D potential
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It is characteristic of the South K
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mechanisms for increasing their sta
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Globalisation and Policy Patterns 5
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When Estonia regained its independe
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5.2 The impacts of globalisation an
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Table 5.2.2 Support of the differen
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5.3 Development policies Erik Terk,
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• C -the “Estonia-centred” su
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Figure 5.4.1 Support for the possib
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Summary Erik Terk Estonia is part o
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ehavioural patterns. Therefore, it
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EDR 2012/2013 authors Clemens Buche
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EDR 2012/2013 authors Alari Purju i
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Editor-in-Chief: Mati Heidmets Prod
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