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Estonia built one of the world’s most advanced digital society long before the COVID-19 pandemic, providing services such as electronic voting, online learning in schools, digital bureaucracy and healthcare. When the coronavirus crisis struck, this investment paid off as Estonia’s digital public services continued mostly uninterrupted. Public-private partnership and trust in public institutions are the secret of Estonia’s success. Citizens embraced the digital revolution because it was transparent, fair and to the benefit of all.
In early March, Estonia declared a state of emergency, closed its borders and entered a full lockdown to stop the spread of COVID-19. But while other countries scrambled to deal with school closures and the disruption to vital services, Estonia simply continued to use the thriving, resilient digital infrastructure it had spent decades developing. Digital classrooms, online teaching materials and a huge range of online public services were already in place. Even more crucially, Estonians knew how to access and use them.
The small Baltic country has built one of the world’s most advanced digital societies . In the coronavirus crisis, this has turned out to be a life-saver. Some public services continued as before, because they were already online. Others were quickly adapted to the new situation.
Estonia’s success is about much more than technological innovation. At the heart of its transformation lies trust in public institutions, and a belief among Estonian citizens that everyone will reap the rewards of technological progress. Such broad support has led to a digital revolution that holds lessons for countries everywhere, and offers inspiration for re-thinking public services for a more resilient future.
E-governance to the rescue
During the lockdown, 99% of government services remained available online in Estonia. Online options already existed for everyday procedures such as registering businesses and properties and applying for social benefits. Certain benefits such as family benefits are even triggered automatically by events such as the birth of a child and its registration