Towards policy lessons for regional development from national and regional

perspectives.

Case of the Republic of Estonia

Lessons from Estonia (1)

• Regional policy is a visible public policy – it is more spoken about before elections and the funding may fluctuate accordingly. EU funds bring along financial stability

• The common understanding is that the good results on the ground are „achieved by effective sectorial policies“, whereas „the problems arise due to weak regional policy“ and thus they are to be dealt by ministers responsible for regional policy

• Regional policy can deliver good results, but without proper publicity nobody knows about it

Lessons from Estonia (2)

• Good results can be achieved also by small amounts of funds. But not for long…

• Even in the case of scarcity of funds, there are the most important resources available – people and ideas

• Essential elements of good management – a vision and motivation of agents – can also produce remarkable results

Lessons from Estonia (3)

• Infrastructure needs are obvious, but jobs and entrepreneurship are more important

• The policy topics discussed at domestic political arena and international professional forums are different

• Regional policy has two sides – it should follow the regional needs, but it also creates new demand at regional level. Therefore, it is useful to seek for innovative activities, even if it seems to be risky at first

Lessons from Estonia (4)

• Continuous support to certain regions create also negative side-effects

• It is always easier to start a new programme instead of closing an ineffective one

• Delegation of powers creates ownership for policy. Cooperation of municipalities is difficult to be achieved, but financial means help it. Strong regional level would be, of course, much better…

Lessons from Estonia (5)

• It seems impossible to change demographic processes, although there are certain expectations

• In small country it is much more difficult to use nice-looking quantitative indicators. However, you do not have to measure everything, you can just see what happens…