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Case Study: Estonia’s Government and Institutional Architecture

ID: PRO-523 L: 63 Status: Not started

Current Institutional Architecture: Origins and Feature.

TODO: Every institution analyze is an in case study; but should be link to this main document.

Note: To analyze Estonia structural transformation

  • What does the “ Chancellery of the Riigikogu” do?
  • What is the accountability rules of the Estonian Public Organizations?

  • How the check-and-balances works in Estonia?

  • Institutional Implementation & Performance

  • Legal Architecture
    • Law Analysis → Find the legal dataset
    • https://www.riigiteataja.ee/en/
  • Organizational Thinking
  • State / Public Sector
    • Territorial Governance & Organization
    • Civil Service
    • Public Administration Model
      • Monitor by the Minister of Finance
      • https://www.fin.ee/en/state-local-governments-spatial-planning/riigihaldus
      • …
    • Public Governance Structure → Holding / Services / Functions
    • Functions
      • Audit System
      • …
  • Private Entities
  • Production & Research Institutional Architecture [This should be a case study]
    • Research, Finance, Coordination, Training, Technological Diffusion, Enterprises.
    • …

Index

Public Sector

Institutions part of the public law.

Government affiliated enterprises regulated by the private law are not part of this.

State Anatomy:

  • Legislative: The Riigikogu (Parliament) enacts laws and approves the state budget.
  • Executive: The President (head of state) and the Government (headed by the Prime Minister) implement laws and policies.
  • Judiciary: Independent courts ensure the enforcement of laws and uphold constitutional principles.

https://www.fin.ee/riigihaldus-ja-avalik-teenistus-kinnisvara/riigihaldus/avaliku-sektori-statistika [Public Sector Organizations - Institutions]

Civil Service

Some of the civil service selection, training, working contracts are very strict.

Reader: I value self-organization, adaptability, and localized decision-making guided by a minimal set of rules; strict specification; and freedom of implementation; with a very strong auditing to analyze the functioning of the system; see deviations; and regulate the bad behaviors.

…

  • Top Civil Service
  • https://www.riigikantselei.ee/en/supporting-government-and-prime-minister/top-civil-service
  • https://www.riigiteataja.ee/en/eli/509072014003/consolide [Study - Convert to Case Study]
  • …
  • Typology of Officials & Selection Process
    • …
  • Selection Process
    • Decrets
    • Public Selections
    • Elections
    • Presidential Appointments
    • …
  • …

Production & Research Institutional Architecture

Growth Measure; Very basic stable macro-economic environment; free-trade (they have a floating exchange rate scheme (so in order to buy; one have to sell)); not corporate income tax on reinvested profits; attract FDI,

Which kinds of FDI where attracted?

Estonia started its journey toward becoming a digital society, investing in telecommunications and internet infrastructure.

Privatizations: Large industries, including manufacturing and energy, were sold to private investors, often through auctions or voucher-based systems.

Manufacturing: The government encouraged the revival of manufacturing industries like electronics, machinery, and textiles, which were less dependent on Soviet-era trade.

IT and Technology: While not initially a focus of the industrial policy, investments in technology and telecommunications in the late 1990s laid the groundwork for Estonia's future as a digital economy.

Estonia adopted a laissez-faire approach to industrial policy, avoiding direct government intervention or subsidies. Reader: I don’t like the laissez-faire tag here; because they work to attract sectorial investments.

  • Make a Case Study of “Economic Structural Change & Technological Competence in Estonia“
    • Technology means: not the used of technical object; the science; and principles of transforming nature.
  • Ahde, P., & Rajasalu, T. (1992). On the Economic Structure of Estonia and Finland before the 1990's (No. 422). ETLA Discussion Papers.
  • Kilvits, K. (2002, November). Convergence of small open industry in Estonia. In IES Proceedings (Vol. 1, pp. 1-23).
  • Madariaga, A. (2017). Mechanisms of neoliberal resilience: comparing exchange rates and industrial policy in Chile and Estonia. Socio-Economic Review, 15(3), 637-660.
  • …

Audit System

Selection Method: The president presents it to the parliament. The official is independent.

National Audit Office

  • https://www.riigikontroll.ee/ [National Audit Office]
  • …

…

Justice

…

  • Application
  • Police
  • Prosecution
  • Public Conciliator
  • Constitution: Adopted in 1992, it is the supreme law of Estonia. It defines the structure of government, guarantees fundamental rights, and outlines the legal system's functioning.
  • …
  • https://www.riigiteataja.ee/en/eli/502112017001/consolide
  • Luhamaa, K., & Ristikivi, M. (2022). Rebuilding the court system of Estonia after the communist regime. Juridica Int'l, 31, 81.
  • Ligi, T. (2012). Judicial independence in Estonia. In Judicial Independence in Transition (pp. 739-791). Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
  • Ristikivi, M., Kangur, A., Kull, I., Luhamaa, K., Sedman, M., Siimets-Gross, H., & Värv, A. (2023). An introduction to Estonian legal culture. In Handbook on Legal Cultures: A Selection of the World's Legal Cultures (pp. 389-418). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
  • …

Court System

  • County and Administrative Courts: First-instance courts for civil, criminal, and administrative matters.
  • Circuit Courts: Intermediate appellate courts reviewing decisions of lower courts.
  • Supreme Court (Riigikohus): The highest court, acting as the court of cassation and the Constitutional Review Chamber.

Practical Administration:

https://www.riigikohus.ee/en/estonian-court-system

  • Criminal Law: Codified in the Penal Code, emphasizing individual accountability and proportionality of punishment.
  • Civil Law: Covers property, contracts, family, and inheritance law, codified in the Civil Code.
  • Administrative Law: Governs relationships between individuals and the state.
  • Constitutional Law: Ensures the legality of laws and acts under the Constitution, reviewed by the Supreme Court.
  • Judges: Independent, appointed for life, selected through competitive exams.
  • Lawyers: Members of the Estonian Bar Association represent clients in legal matters.
  • Prosecutors: Handle criminal investigations and represent the state in criminal cases.
  • Notaries: Authenticate transactions and provide legal advice in civil matters.

…

References

  • https://www.valitsus.ee/en [Polity / State]
  • https://www.riigikantselei.ee/en [CEO / Administration]
  • https://www.eesti.ee/eraisik/en/avaleht [Digital Service Point]
  • https://estonia.ee/ [Country Brand]
  • https://avaandmed.eesti.ee/ [Public Data Portal]
  • https://www.stat.ee/en [Estonia Statistics]
  • https://www.etis.ee/ [Research Information System]
  • Randma, T. (2001). A small civil service in transition: The case of Estonia. Public Administration and Development: The International Journal of Management Research and Practice, 21(1), 41-51.
  • Mäeltsemees, S. (2012). Local government in Estonia. Local Government in the Member States of the European Union: a comparative legal perspective, 157-184.
  • Anthes, G. (2015). Estonia: a model for e-government. Communications of the ACM, 58(6), 18-20.
  • Drechsler, W. (2004). Governance, good governance, and government: the case for Estonian administrative capacity. Trames, 8(4), 388-396.
  • https://link.springer.com/book/10.1057/9781137359636
  • https://www.riigiteataja.ee/en/eli/521052015001/consolide
  • https://www.eestipank.ee/en [Central Bank]
  • …