ESTONIA'S EVOLVING DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TALLINN 000264 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL EAID EN SUBJECT: ESTONIA'S EVOLVING DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE AGENDA ¶1. (U) Summary. While a relative newcomer to the field of foreign assistance, Estonia continues to expand its role as a donor nation. The GOE goal is to spend at least 0.1 percent of Gross National Income (GNI) on development assistance by 2010, still short of the EU target of 0.17 percent for new members. Since 2006, Government of Estonia (GOE) assistance has focused on four priority countries - Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova and Afghanistan - although it has increased humanitarian donations to crisis countries in Asia and Africa. End Summary. STEADY INCREASE IN ASSISTANCE ¶2. (U) Total development assistance by the GOE has increased dramatically since Estonia was first listed as a donor country by the OECD in 1999. Data collected by the European Commission reflects that Estonia's development assistance constituted 0.09 percent of GNI in 2006. According to Marje Luup, Development Assistance Division Director of the MFA, preliminary numbers for 2007 suggest that the GOE is close to raising official development assistance to at least 0.1 percent GNI. The GOE is also striving to meet the 0.17 percent figure, as suggested in the Council conclusions of the EU Council of Ministers in May 2005. Bi/trilateral development assistance amounts in the MFA budget have also doubled during recent years: in 2006 it was USD 1,815,000 and in 2007 it reached USD 3,790,000. (Note: Estonia's total assistance budget for 2008 is USD 22 million. Two thirds of this sum is earmarked for multi-lateral assistance projects funneled through the European Union. End Note.) At the same time, according to public opinion surveys, public interest in global issues has increased in Estonia - growing from 57 percent to 67 percent since 2005. These polls also indicate that support for assistance to poorer countries increased from 65 percent to 76 percent in the same time period. HOW THE GOE ADMINISTERS ASSISTANCE ¶3. (U) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the lead agency for development assistance in Estonia, with an allocated assistance budget of USD 6 million for 2008. Other ministries, state agencies and local governments have budgeted over USD 2.3 million for 2008, including the Ministry of Defense with USD 650,000. The MFA, through its Office of Development Cooperation, has primary responsibility for coordinating all development assistance policy planning and implementation. The Ministry identifies potential assistance projects based on requests from partner countries, international organizations or NGOs operating in partner countries. Estonian civil society associations like the Estonian Development Cooperation Roundtable (EDCR),an umbrella organization for NGOs, also play an important role in identifying and developing assistance policy projects. GOE ASSISTANCE PRIORITIES ¶4. (U) In 2006, the GOE adopted a strategy for development assistance establishing Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and Afghanistan as priority partner countries through 2010. Since that time, overall assistance to these countries has steadily increased. Citing Estonia's own remarkable success in rapidly transitioning to a stable democracy with a competitive market economy, the GOE feels uniquely qualified to offer assistance to other emerging post-Soviet societies. Assistance to these countries has focused largely on Estonia sharing its experiences with NATO and EU accession by sending civilian and military experts to offer advice on defense planning, integration into Euro- Atlantic security structures and implementing democratic civilian control over the armed forces. Estonia has also assisted these countries in civil society development by sending expert advisors as well as inviting politicians and civil society leaders to Estonia to gain first hand knowledge of a functioning democracy. Moldova, for one, has benefited from training received from Estonian tax and customs experts. ¶5. (U) Afghanistan is ONE of Estonia's highest foreign policy priorities. Estonian troops have served in southern Afghanistan since 2002. Between 2002 and 2007, the GOE, in partnership with agencies like the International Red Cross, UN High Commissioner on Refugees and Counter Narcotics Trust Fund, spent more than USD 336,000 in Afghanistan. Projects included provision of blankets, linen, first aid kits and supplies to assist refugees, counter narcotics TALLINN 00000264 002 OF 003 operations, support for a 2009/2010 Population and Housing census project, construction of an academic center and improvements in pediatric and women's care at the Helmand provincial hospital. In 2008, GOE assistance to Afghanistan will reach USD 500,000. The funds are being used to provide medical equipment and winter fuel for the Helmand provincial hospital, as well as to support the clearing of land mines. In March 2008, the GOE also sent a civilian medical advisor to Helmand to support the development of a sustainable healthcare system in the province and to help coordinate international aid. TRILATERAL COOPERATION ¶6. (U) The GOE also seeks opportunities for trilateral cooperation with other donors to leverage its assistance resources. MFA contacts have indicated a strong interest in collaborating with the Unites States. Estonia has already partnered with Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Canada and the United Kingdom on projects supporting Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia. The Estonian MFA, in conjunction with Sweden and Finland, is currently lending financial assistance to young Georgian, Ukrainian, Armenian and Moldavian diplomats and civil servants who wish to study at the Estonia School of Diplomacy. The Estonian MFA, through the Council of Nordic Ministers, is also supporting (USD 45,000) the European University of Humanities, a Belarusian university based in Vilnius, Lithuania. Under this program, young Belarusians denied educational opportunities due to their political beliefs have access to higher education. Estonian Foreign Minister, Urmas Paet has commented that, 'Allocating funds for the university is a good way to support democratic movements in Belarus and provide young people with the experience of learning in an open society.' BRANCHING OUT ¶7. (U) Estonia is also increasingly proactive in providing international humanitarian assistance. In 2006 and 2007, Estonia provided assistance to victims of the Indonesian earthquake as well as refugees in Lebanon, Darfur and the Congo. In 2008, Estonia pledged USD 50,000 in humanitarian assistance to Tajik children suffering from a cold wave, internationally displaced persons in Kenya, and Burmese victims of Cyclone Nargis. In February 2008, the GOE pledged USD 1 million dollars to Palestine at the Paris Donors' Conference and USD 1 million over the next four years for reconstruction efforts in Kosovo. These were the two largest single donations ever made by Estonia. ¶8. (U) In addition to successful economic and democratic development, Estonia has also created a niche for itself in the realm of internet technology. As such, many emerging democracies look to Estonia for assistance in development of their own IT sector. The GOE's main assistance partner in this field has been the e- Governance Academy. The e-Governance Academy, founded in 2002, is an Estonian non-governmental, non-profit organization, founded for the creation and transfer of knowledge concerning e-governance, e-democracy and the development of civil society. Its mission is to train and advise leaders and stakeholders in using information and communication technology (ICT) to increase government efficiency and to improve democratic processes with the aim of building open information societies. ¶9. (U) ONE of the more successful IT assistance programs has been the joint GOE e-Governance Academy 'Leap' program supporting the transfer of knowledge and expertise in information and communication technology (ICT) to educators in partner nations like Georgia and Moldova. The e-Governance Academy has also conducted IT training and support sessions with government and public sector officials in Georgia, Ukraine, Macedonia and Kosovo. ¶10. (SBU) Comment. In its Consensus on Development (signed in December 2005),the EU set a goal for new member states to spend 0.17 percent of GNI on official development assistance by 2011. The Consensus also identified poverty eradication as the EU's primary objective. Estonia is not on track to meet either of these goals. The GOE has also been criticized for focusing its assistance in its own foreign policy neighborhood and not expanding its programs to Africa. However, GOE efforts to administer assistance in Africa TALLINN 00000264 003 OF 003 are hampered by the fact that currently, the GOE has only ONE diplomat in the region working out of the Swedish Embassy in Cairo. ¶11. (SBU) Comment Continued. Despite having been a donor nation for less than 10 years, the GOE has clearly demonstrated its commitment to not only promoting democratic principles, but to increasing its role in humanitarian assistance as well. While recognizing that up to this point the GOE has focused the majority of its assistance efforts towards countries with which they are familiar, there are indications that they are gradually branching out to areas in Asia and Africa. Post is confident that as the GOE continues to gain experience in regions outside the former sphere of Soviet influence, their capacity to identify and address assistance needs will increase as well. Post will also continue to encourage Estonia's active promotion of democratic government and reform in priority countries in pursuing our core MSP Goal of Strengthening Estonia's Role in the World. End Comment. PHILLIPS