Estonia
Estonian Libraries - ESIF
Policy Objectives 4 and 5 of the European Structural and Investment Funds
Estonia, like other EU member states, is committed to building a more social and inclusive society. Through the ESIF, the country aims to:
- Implement the European Pillar of Social Rights: Estonia is working to ensure that all citizens have access to quality education, employment, social protection, and healthcare. This involves investments in early childhood education, vocational training, and active labor market policies.
- Promote social inclusion and equal opportunities: Efforts are focused on reducing poverty, social exclusion, and discrimination. This includes support for vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities, Roma communities, and migrants.
- Invest in education, training, employment, and social protection: Estonia is investing in education and training programs to enhance employability and skills development. Additionally, the country is strengthening its social protection systems to provide a safety net for its citizens.
Specific examples of ESIF-funded projects in Estonia related to Policy Objective 4 include:
- Supporting the development of inclusive early childhood education services
- Providing vocational training for unemployed youth and adults
- Investing in social housing and affordable housing initiatives
- Supporting employment and reintegration programs for people with disabilities
Estonia aims to strengthen local development and citizen participation through the ESIF. Key focus areas include:
- Fostering sustainable and integrated development of all territories: This involves supporting balanced development across the country, with a focus on rural areas and less developed regions.
- Supporting local initiatives and community-led development: Estonia is empowering local communities to take ownership of their development processes through participatory planning and implementation.
- Strengthening the principle of subsidiarity: Decision-making is being decentralized, with more power given to local authorities to address local challenges and opportunities.
Specific examples of ESIF-funded projects in Estonia related to Policy Objective 5 include:
- Supporting rural development initiatives, such as improving infrastructure and promoting agriculture
- Investing in urban regeneration and sustainable urban development
- Supporting community-led projects in areas such as culture, tourism, and social services
By implementing these policy objectives, Estonia aims to create a more just, inclusive, and sustainable society where all citizens have equal opportunities to participate in and benefit from economic and social development.
The project BALTIC UKH helps authorities and education institutions increase digital literacy by designing attractive hybrid spaces for people to learn, interact and exchange reliable information.
Project summary
BALTIC UKH responds to the growing need for spaces across the BSR where citizens can access and exchange reliable and comprehensible information. These spaces need to be open for digital and physical provision of information and services, and be connected to global information networks and local communities. Public entities&NGOs that provide information and related services are needed to design such innovative spaces that enable citizens to become digitally literate and well-informed. Digital literacy is a crucial competence for professional development and sociocultural participation, as well as in the fight against disinformation and propaganda. Importantly, engaging groups and individuals is a key to designing successful hybrid spaces for information provision and knowledge exchange, however, there are no standards or shortcuts for designing such spaces. The aim of the project is to provide public authorities and others with tools and methods for the participatory design of accessible and attractive informational spaces and services. Following the idea of Urban Knowledge Hubs (UKH) as a new space concept, the project’s main output will be a research-based toolbox for the conceptualisation and design of such hybrid information hubs. The toolbox will be adaptable for the needs of public authorities in urban and rural areas, as well as NGOs & higher education institutions. It will include best practices and will be made publicly available in 5 languages in all BSR countries.
Business analysis and service design of library services
- Ongoing project
- Proposed on March 14, 2023
In 2022 first part of the project: business analysis and service design was carried out. Project focused on library services which ILS should include and how users should be able to interact with library via new user portal. The aim is to replace by the year 2026 three user services portals with a single portal and improve the ability of libraries to offer digital services. To provide optimised services, the concept of a single integrated library system (SILS) was developed, consisting of three separate components: a user service portal for readers, a central database of bibliographic records and a library system software for librarians. These key components are linked with several supporting systems and solutions that are necessary for the provision of library services.
The project was carried out by the National Library of Estonia in cooperation with Ernst & Young Baltics and Rethink. The work was based on close cooperation with libraries who were involved through workshops, interviews, and discussions throughout the project. The project steering group, comprised of representatives of ministries, libraries and the Association of Estonian Cities and Municipalities, was included in the exchange of ideas on modelling the future library system. The business analysis and service design project of library services was financed by the European Regional Development Fund.
The service considers the needs of schools to support teaching, and the needs of people with special needs, including, for example, the blind and visually impaired.
Why: A pan-European survey, in which the National Library of Estonia and Tartu University Library also participated – a total of 2,500 people – revealed that people want to borrow e-books from libraries. Almost 90 percent of the respondents considered it important to be able to download the book to their device. At the moment, there is no national free e-publication lending system operating on a uniform basis in Estonia.
The duration of the project is 2021-2023, the service was launched in February 2023. The project is financed in cooperation with the European Regional Development Fund and the Ministry of Culture.
