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It is estimated that 17% of the native Estonian-speaking population speak a dialect. This is 2 percentage points more than in the previous census. The share of dialect speakers has increased the most in Hiiu and Saare counties, but it has not decreased in any county. 10% of dialect speakers speak more than one dialect.

Today, on 25 February, the Statistical Council held a meeting where they reviewed last year’s results and commended the production of official statistics, but the Council also acknowledged that the statistical system continues to be underfunded. The Council was briefed on the methodology approved by Statistics Estonia for the Population and Housing Census: namely, a register-based census, which is in accordance with EU regulations, combined with a sample survey to collect data on characteristics not covered by registers.

Which skills should be acquired to remain competitive on the labour market and to prepare for the future? These questions are answered by the Continuing Vocational Training Survey conducted by Statistics Estonia.

Helle Bunder, leading analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that the increased output of manufacturing resulted primarily from the higher volume of production in the manufacture of wood. “In January, the output of the wood industry was up by 8.3% year on year. This was the first time since May 2022 that the output of this industry increased,” explained Bunder. In January, the volume of industrial production increased in more than half of manufacturing activities. Looking at the larger industries, there was an increase in output in the manufacture of wood (8.3%), fabricated metal products (5.9%)

A total of 737,873 dwellings were counted in the 2021 Population and Housing Census, based on registers. Compared to the 2011 census, 47,793 new dwellings have been built, which is 1000 fewer than in the previous ten years (2001–2011). According to census data, there are now 14% more private houses than 10 years ago and 24% of all dwellings are vacant.

Johanna Linda Pihlak, analyst at Statistics Estonia, noted that the biggest decline at 4% was registered in the turnover volume of stores selling manufactured goods. In grocery stores, the volume of turnover was down by 3%. “However, the turnover volume of enterprises engaged in the retail sale of automotive fuel increased by 2% last year,” added Pihlak. Retail trade volume turned to growth again in the last month of the year. “The turnover of retail trade enterprises was €1 billion in December 2024, and compared with the same month in 2023, turnover volume was up by 1%,” Pihlak pointed out

According to Statistics Estonia, in March, the consumer price index increased by 0.7% compared with February and by 15.3% compared with March 2022. Goods were 14.4% and services 17.2% more expensive than in March last year.

Helga Laurmaa, leading analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that nearly 1.86 million foreign tourists and nearly 1.76 million domestic tourists were accommodated in Estonia in 2024. “Compared with 2023, there were 11% more foreign tourists, while the number of domestic tourists remained at the same level. If we compare last year’s figures to 2019, which was the pre-pandemic record year, the number of accommodated domestic tourists has increased by over 200,000 but, at the same time, the number of foreign tourists has decreased by almost 400,000,” noted Laurmaa. Tourist arrivals from Finland

“In 1994, the life expectancy of Estonian residents was 66.5 years, whereas by 2024 it had increased by 13 years and reached 79.5 years. In both Latvia and Lithuania, life expectancy has increased by about nine years in the same 30-year period. Life expectancy is currently 77.6 years in Lithuania and 75.6 years in Latvia,” explained Eveli Voolens, the social statistics team lead at Statistics Estonia. She added that Latvia has one of the lowest life expectancies in Europe. On the other hand, in Finland, life expectancy was already 76.7 years in 1994 and has now increased by 4.9 years to 81.6