Is ICT the solution of the problem for Estonia?

Abstract

The Singing Revolution led to regaining independence after 50 years of Soviet occupation and created a new socioeconomic situation in Estonia in 1991. One of the first steps, of the Estonian government, was a telecommunication concession to the private company Eesti Telekom, in 1992. In 1995-1998, the Estonian government launched the national ICT strategy followed by the e-governance program. Fast economic and welfare growth in 1995-2007 ended with the global crisis, reminding many that linear growth of the economy is not sustainable anymore. Some new trends appeared in the last 8 years: Estonia has become the home of many new ICT startups which soon became global. There are opinions that it is not important for the Estonian economy, and ordinary Estonians will never experience a better living standard from such ICT startups. The chapter, based on data available from the statistics and multiple case studies, tries to find the answer.