Estonia

Did You Know?

Population
1.3
mil.
Renewable energy
11.97
%

How’s Life?

Estonia has made progress over the last decade in terms of improving the quality of life of its citizens. Until the financial crisis of 2008, the economy had seen record-breaking growth. Notwithstanding, Estonia still ranks low in a large number of topics relative to most other countries in the Better Life Index.

Money, while it cannot buy happiness, is an important means to achieving higher living standards. In Estonia, the average person earns 13 149 USD a year, less than the OECD average of 22 387 USD a year. But there is a considerable gap between the richest and poorest – the top 20% of the population earn five times as much as the bottom 20%.

In terms of employment, some 61% of people aged 15 to 64 in Estonia have a paid job, below the OECD employment average of 66%. Some 62% of men are in paid work, compared with 61% of women, suggesting that women are able to successfully balance family and career. People in Estonia work 1 879 hours a year, less than the OECD average of 1 749 hours. Some 4% of employees work very long hours, much lower than the OECD average of 9%, and with little difference between men and women; 5% of men work very long hours compared with 2% for women.

Having a good education is an important requisite for finding a job. In Estonia, 89% of adults aged 25-64 have earned the equivalent of a high-school degree, considerably higher than the OECD average of 74%. In contrast to most OECD countries, more women have completed high school, at 91%, compared with 86% for men. Estonia is a top-performing country in terms of the quality of its educational system. The average student scored 514 in reading literacy, maths and science in the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). This score is higher than the OECD average of 497, making Estonia one of the strongest OECD countries in students’ skills. On average in Estonia, girls outperformed boys by 12 points, greater than the average OECD gap of 9 points.

In terms of health, life expectancy at birth in Estonia is almost 76 years, lower than the OECD average of 80 years. Life expectancy for women is 80 years, compared with 71 for men. The level of atmospheric PM10 – tiny air pollutant particles small enough to enter and cause damage to the lungs –is 13 micrograms per cubic meter, considerably lower than the OECD average of 22 micrograms per cubic meter. Estonia performs less well in terms of water quality, as 70% of people say they are satisfied with the quality of their water, below the OECD average of 84%.

Concerning the public sphere, there is a strong sense of community and moderate levels of civic participation in Estonia, where 91% of people believe that they know someone they could rely on in time of need, in line with the OECD average. Voter turnout, a measure of public trust in government and of citizens’ participation in the political process, was 62%, below the OECD average of 73%.

In general, Estonians are less satisfied with their lives than the OECD average, with 69% of people saying they have more positive experiences in an average day (feelings of rest, pride in accomplishment, enjoyment, etc) than negative ones (pain, worry, sadness, boredom, etc). This figure is one of the lowest in the OECD, where the average is 80%.

Topics

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Estonia in Detail

Housing

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Key Findings

Living in satisfactory housing conditions is one of the most important aspects of people’s lives. Housing is essential to meet basic needs, such as shelter, but it is not just a question of four walls and a roof. Housing should offer a place to sleep and rest where people feel safe and have privacy and personal space; somewhere they can raise a family. All of these elements help make a house a home. And of course there is the question whether people can afford adequate housing.

Housing costs take up a large share of the household budget and represent the largest single expenditure for many individuals and families, by the time you add up elements such as rent (or loan repayments for those buying their own home), gas, electricity, water, furniture or repairs In Estonia, households on average spend 21% of their net disposable income on keeping a roof over their heads, slightly below the OECD average of 22%.

In addition to housing costs it is also important to examine living conditions, such as the average number of rooms shared per person and whether households have access to basic facilities. In Estonia, 77% of people say they are satisfied with their current housing situation, much lower than the OECD average of 87%. This low level of subjective satisfaction reflects Estonia’s mixed performance in objective housing indicators.

The number of rooms in a dwelling, divided by the number of persons living there, indicates whether residents are living in crowded conditions. Overcrowded housing may have a negative impact on physical and mental health, relations with others and the development of children. In addition, dense living conditions are often a sign of inadequate water and sewage supply. In Estonia, the average home contains 1.2 rooms per person, less than the OECD average of 1.6 rooms per person. In terms of basic facilities, an estimated 88.9% of people in Estonia live in dwellings with private access to indoor flushing toilets, lower than the OECD average of 97.8% and one of the lowest rates across the OECD.

Indicators

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Income

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Key Findings

While money may not buy happiness, it is an important means to achieving higher living standards and thus greater well-being. Higher economic wealth may also improve access to quality education, healthcare and housing.

Household net-adjusted disposable income is the amount of money that a household earns each year after tax. It represents the money available to a household for spending on goods or services. In Estonia, the average household net-adjusted disposable income is 13 149 USD a year, lower than the OECD average of 22 387USD.

Household financial wealth is the total value of a household’s financial worth. In Estonia, the average household wealth is estimated at 11 231 USD, lower than the OECD average of 36 238 USD. While the ideal measure of household wealth should include real assets (e.g. land and dwellings), such information is currently available for only a small number of OECD countries.

Despite a general increase in living standards across OECD countries over the past fifteen years, not all people have benefited from this to the same extent. In Estonia, the income of the top 20% of the population is 25 625 USD a year, whereas the bottom 20% live on 4 996 USD a year.

Indicators

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Jobs

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Key Findings

Having a job brings many important benefits, including: providing a source of income, improving social inclusion, fulfilling one’s own aspirations, building self-esteem and developing skills and competencies. In Estonia, nearly 61% of the working-age population aged 15 to 64 has a paid job. This figure is lower than the OECD employment average of 66%. Employment rates are generally higher for the better-off in society than the worst-off; in Estonia 85% of the top 20% of the population has a paid job, compared with 35% for the bottom 20%. This 50% difference is higher than the OECD average 35% and suggests the job market in Estonia is highly restrictive.

Women are still less likely than men to participate in the labour market. In Estonia, 61% of women have jobs. This is close to the OECD average and 62% employment rate of men in Estonia. This 1% gender difference is much lower than the OECD average of 13% and suggests Estonia has been successful in addressing the constraints and barriers women face accessing work.

Young Estonians, aged 15-24, however face difficulties, with an unemployment rate of 32% compared with the OECD average of 16.7%.

Unemployed persons are defined as those who are not currently working but are willing to do so and actively searching for work. Long-term unemployment can have a large negative effect on feelings of well-being and self-worth and result in a loss of skills, further reducing employability. In Estonia, the percentage of the labour force that has been unemployed for a year or longer is currently at 7.6%, much higher than the OECD average of 3.0% and one of the highest unemployment rates. There is little difference on average between men and women in the OECD area when it comes to long-term unemployment. In Estonia, however, the difference is relatively high with an unemployment rate of 9.4% for men and 5.9% for women.

The wages and other monetary benefits that come with employment are an important aspect of job quality. In Estonia, people earn 17 145 US dollars per year on average, lower than the OECD average 34 033 US dollars. Not everyone earns that amount however. Whereas the top 20% of the population earn 33 631 US dollars per year, the bottom 20% live on 6 342 per year.

 

Indicators

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Community

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Key Findings

Humans are social creatures. The frequency of our contact with others and the quality of our personal relationships are thus crucial determinants of our well-being. Helping others can also make you happier. People who volunteer tend to be more satisfied with their lives than those who do not. Time spent volunteering also contributes to a healthy civil society. On average, people in Estonia spend 1 minute per day in volunteering activities, lower than the OECD average of 4 minutes . Nearly 34% reported having helped a stranger in the last month, less than the OECD average of 47% and suggesting an increased risk of social isolation.

A strong social network, or community, can provide emotional support during both good and bad times as well as provide access to jobs, services and other material opportunities. In Estonia, 92% of people believe that they know someone they could rely on in a time of need, close to the OECD average of 91%. There is little difference between men and women, as 92% of men believe they have this kind of social support, compared with 90% of women. While gender has little impact on social network support, there is a relationship between the availability of social support on the one hand, and people’s education and income, on the other . In Estonia, around 85% of the bottom 20% report having someone to count on for help in times of need, compared to over 91% for the top 20%.


 

Indicators

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Education

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Key Findings

A well-educated and well-trained population is essential for a country’s social and economic well-being. Education plays a key role in providing individuals with the knowledge, skills and competences needed to participate effectively in society and in the economy. Most concretely, having a good education greatly improves the likelihood of finding a job and earning enough money. Across OECD countries, men with university-level degrees are 18% more likely to find jobs, and women are 32% more likely. Lifetime earnings also increase with each level of education.

Following a decline in manual labour over previous decades, employers now favour a more educated labour force. High-school graduation rates therefore provide a good indication of whether a country is preparing its students to meet the minimum requirements of the job market.

In Estonia, 89% of adults aged 25-64 have earned the equivalent of a high-school degree, much higher than the OECD average of 74%. Across the OECD, slightly more men aged 25-64 have the equivalent of a high-school degree compared with women from the same age group. In Estonia, however, the opposite is true as 91% of women have successfully completed high-school compared with 86% of men. Among younger people – a better indicator of Estonia’s future – 86% of 25-34 year-olds have earned the equivalent of a high-school degree, also higher than the OECD average of 81% .

Estonians can expect to go through 18 years of education between the ages of 5 and 39, slightly more than the OECD average of 17 years. This high level of education expectancy echoes Estonia’s good performance in the educational attainment of its 25-34 year-old population.

But graduation rates, while important, speak little to the quality of education received. The OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) reviews the extent to which students have acquired some of the knowledge and skills that are essential for full participation in modern societies. In 2009, PISA focused on examining students’ reading ability, skills in maths and level in sciences, as research shows that these skills are more reliable predictors of economic and social well-being than the number of years spent in school.

The average student in Estonia scored 514 in reading literacy, maths and sciences, higher than the OECD average of 497. On average in Estonia, girls outperformed boys by 12 points, more than the average OECD gap of 9 points,

The best-performing school systems manage to provide high-quality education to all students . In Estonia, the average difference in results, between the top 20% and bottom 20%, is of 64 points, much lower than the OECD average of 99 points and one of the lowest gaps amongst OECD countries. This suggests the school system in Estonia provides relatively equal access to high-quality education.

Indicators

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Environment

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Key Findings

The quality of our local living environment has a direct impact on our health. Having access to green spaces for example, is essential for quality of life. An unspoiled environment is a source of satisfaction, improves mental well-being, allows people to recover from the stress of everyday life and to perform physical activity. In Estonia, 6% of people feel they lack access to green spaces, much less than the European average of 12%.

Outdoor air pollution is one important environmental issue that directly affects the quality of peoples’ lives. Despite national and international interventions and decreases in major pollutant emissions, the health impacts of urban air pollution continue to worsen with air pollution set to become the top environmental cause of premature mortality globally by 2050.

Air pollution in urban centres, often caused by transport and the use of small-scale burning of wood or coal, is linked to a range of health problems, from minor eye irritation to upper respiratory symptoms in the short-term and chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, cardiovascular diseases and lung cancer in the long-term. Children and the elderly may be particularly vulnerable.

PM10 – tiny particulate matter small enough to be inhaled into the deepest part of the lung – is monitored in OECD countries because it can harm human health and reduce life expectancy. In Estonia, PM10 levels are 12.6 micrograms per cubic meter, much lower than the OECD average of 22 micrograms per cubic meter and one of the lowest rates in the OECD.

Access to clean water is fundamental to human well-being. Despite significant progress in OECD countries in reducing water pollution, improvements in freshwater quality are not always easy to discern. In Estonia, 70% of people say they are satisfied with water quality. This score is much lower than the OECD average of 85% and suggests Estonia still faces difficulties in providing good quality water to its inhabitants.

Indicators

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Civic Engagement

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Key Findings

A cohesive society is one where citizens have a high degree of confidence in their governmental institutions and public administration. In Estonia, 42% of people say they trust their political institutions, lower than the OECD average of 56%. High voter turnout is another measure of public trust in government and of citizens’ participation in the political process. In the most recent elections for which data is available, voter turnout in Estonia was 62% of those registered. This figure is lower than the OECD average of 73%.

Ensuring that government decision making is not compromised by conflicts of interest is key to maintaining trust in government. Transparency is therefore essential to hold government to account and to maintain confidence in public institutions.

Freedom of information laws (FOI) allow the possibility for individuals to access undisclosed information. For such policies to be successful, the public should have a clear understanding of their rights under the law, should be able to file requests with ease and should be protected against any possible retaliation. People in Estonia can file a request for information either in writing, online, by telephone or in person – thus greatly facilitating the FOI process. There are even provisions for anonymity – an important protection that few OECD countries have adopted. There is not yet, however, built-in protection from retaliation.

Better Policies for Better Lives

Boosting effective citizen involvement

Effective citizen consultation is critical to gaining society’s agreement as to how Estonia’s growing wealth should be used. The Estonian Constitution, government rules and rules for drafting laws include elements of participatory democracy. Promising initiatives include the creation of www.osale.ee, where individuals and NGOs can publicly give their opinion about draft legislation. The website has over 3 000 registered users ranging from individual citizens to representatives of professional organisations and civil society organisations.

The government is also paying special attention to training civil servants on engaging civil society organisations and the public in policy making. Courses are based on citizen engagement principles and participatory practices and include stakeholders and civil society organisations.

Examples of public participation in action include Kambja, in south-eastern Estonia, where ZZ Youth, a local civil society organisation has been entrusted by the local government to plan and manage the services of the Open Youth Centre. This experience shows how partnerships with non-government actors can help respond to a community need which could not have been met by local government acting alone due to limited resources.

 

Indicators

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Health

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Key Findings

Most OECD countries have enjoyed large gains in life expectancy over the past decades, thanks to improvements in living conditions, public health interventions and progress in medical care. In 2008, life expectancy at birth in Estonia stood at 76 years – below the OECD average of 80 years. Life expectancy for women is 81 years, compared with 71 for men, considerably greater than the average OECD gender gap of six years, with a life expectancy of 83 years for women and 77 for men.

Higher life expectancy is generally associated with higher healthcare spending per person, although many other factors have an impact on life expectancy (such as living standards, lifestyles, education and environmental factors). Total health spending accounted for 7.0% of GDP in Estonia in 2010, lower than the average of 9.6% in OECD countries. Estonia also ranks well below the OECD average in terms of total health spending per person, with spending of 1 263 USD in 2008, compared with an OECD average of 3 060 USD.

Throughout the OECD, tobacco consumption and excessive weight gain remain two important risk factors for many chronic diseases. In Estonia, 26.2% of the adult population reported to smoke every day in 2008— above the OECD average of 23.3%. In Estonia, the obesity rate among adults – based on self-reported height and weight – was 18.0% in 2008, higher than the OECD average of 17%.

When asked, “How is your health in general?” 55% of people in Estonia reported to be in good health, lower than the OECD average of 70%. Despite the subjective nature of this question, the answers have been found to be a good predictor of people’s future health care use . Gender, age and social status may affect answer to this question. On average in OECD countries, men are more likely to report good health than women, with an average of 72% for men and 67% for women. In Estonia, the average is 58% for men and 52% for women. Not surprisingly, older people report poorer health, as do those who are unemployed, or who have less education or income. In 2010, about 73% of the top 20% of the adult population in Estonia rated their health as ‘good’ or ‘very good’, compared to about 43% for the bottom 20%.

Indicators

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Life Satisfaction

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Key Findings

Happiness can be measured in terms of life satisfaction, the presence of positive experiences and feelings, and the absence of negative experiences and feelings. Such measures, while subjective, are a useful complement to compare the quality of life across countries.

Life satisfaction measures how people evaluate their life as a whole rather than their current feelings. It captures a reflective assessment of which life circumstances and conditions are important for subjective well-being. When asked to rate their general satisfaction with life on a scale from 0 to 10, Estonians gave it a 5.5 grade, lower than the OECD average of 6.7.

There is little difference in life satisfaction levels between men and women across OECD countries. This is true in Estonia, where men gave their life a 5.4 grade and women 5.5. Social status does, however, strongly influence subjective well-being. Whereas the bottom 20% of the Estonian population have a life satisfaction level of 4.3, this score reaches 6.8 for the top 20% .

Happiness, or subjective well-being, is also defined as the presence of positive experiences and feelings, and/or the absence of negative experiences and feelings. In Estonia 69% of people reported having more positive experiences in an average day (feelings of rest, pride in accomplishment, enjoyment, etc) than negative ones (pain, worry, sadness, boredom, etc). This figure is much lower than the OECD average of 80% and makes Estonia one of the unhappiest countries in the OECD.

Indicators

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Safety

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Key Findings

Personal security is a core element for the well-being of individuals, and largely reflects the risks of people being physically assaulted or falling victim to other types of crime. Across the OECD, assault rates have generally declined in the past five years. In Estonia, 5.5% of people reported falling victim to assault over the previous 12 months, higher than the OECD average of 4.0%. There is little difference between men and women in assault rates, at less than 1%.

The homicide rate (the number of murders per 100,000 inhabitants) is a more reliable measure of a country’s safety level because, unlike other crimes, murders are usually always reported to the police. According to the latest OECD data, Estonia’s homicide rate is 5.2, much higher than the OECD average of 2.1. In Estonia, the homicide rate for men is 8.9 compared with 2.1 for women.

Fear of crime is another important indicator as it can constrain behaviour, restrict freedom and threaten the foundation of communities. Despite a general reduction in assault rates in the past five years, in many OECD countries feelings of security have declined. In Estonia, 60% of people feel safe walking alone at night, slightly lower than the OECD average of 67%. While men are at a greater risk of being victims of assaults and violent crimes, women report lower feelings of security than men . This has been explained by a greater fear of sexual attacks, the feeling they must also protect their children and their concern that they may be seen as partially responsible .

Social status also has an impact on victimisation rates and perception of security. People with higher income and higher education usually report higher feelings of security and face lower risks of crime. This can be explained by the fact they can afford better security and are less exposed to criminal activity such as youth gangs or drug smuggling. In Estonia, the assault rate of the bottom 20% of the population is 1.8% higher than that of the top 20%.

Indicators

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Work-Life Balance

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Key Findings

Finding a suitable balance between work and life is a challenge for all workers, especially working parents. Some couples would like to have (more) children, but do not see how they could afford to stop working. Other parents are happy with the number of children in their family, but would like to work more. This is a challenge to governments because if parents cannot achieve their desired work/life balance, not only is their welfare lowered but so is development in the country.

People spend one-tenth to one-fifth of their time on unpaid work . The distribution of tasks within the family is still influenced by gender roles: men are more likely to spend more hours in paid work, while women spend longer in unpaid domestic work . Men in Estonia spend 169 minutes per day cooking, cleaning or caring, higher than the OECD average of 131 minutes but still less than Estonian women who spend 288 minutes per day on average on domestic work .

Another important aspect of work-life balance is the amount of time a person spends at work. Evidence suggests that long work hours may impair personal health, jeopardize safety and increase stress. People in Estonia work 1 879 hours a year, one of the highest rates in the OECD where the average is 1 749 hours. The share of employees working more than 50 hours per week is not very large across OECD countries. In Estonia, about 4% of employees work very long hours, lower than the OECD average of 9%. Overall, men spend more hours in paid work: in Estonia 5% of men work very long hours, compared with 2% for women.

The more people work, the less time they have to spend on other activities, such as time with others or leisure. The amount and quality of leisure time is important for people’s overall well-being, and can bring additional physical and mental health benefits. People in Estonia devote 64% of their day, or 14.2 hours, to personal care (eating, sleeping, etc.) and leisure (socializing with friends and family, hobbies, games, computer and television use, etc.) lower than the OECD average of 14.8 hours. Fewer hours in paid work for women do not necessarily result in greater leisure time. In Estonia, both men and women devote approximately 14 hours per day to personal care and leisure.

Indicators

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