About us

We serve as the reliable home of national data and give meaning and value to data. We help people understand the world better through data.

Our new combined mission and vision statement above reflects Statistics Estonia’s main responsibilities:

1. ensure the quality of data on the national level 
2. consistently provide relevant, reliable, and meaningful information.

As the main data competence centre in Estonia, Statistics Estonia is also responsible for coordinating the system of classifications and for data governance in the country.

Official statistics is in accordance with international classifications and methods, as well as with the principles of impartiality, reliability, relevancy, profitability, confidentiality, and transparency. In producing statistics, Statistics Estonia is guided by the Official Statistics Act.

We reflect the situation and changes in the society and offer information important for demographic, social, economic, and environmental development of Estonia. The data collected by Statistics Estonia are necessary for making development plans and projections, for policy planning, scientific and applied research, and for making informed decisions.

We work closely with a wide range of institutions, such as Eurostat (the statistical office of the European Union), the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the OECD, Eesti Pank (central bank of Estonia), the University of Tartu, ministries, and local authorities. Respondents are also our important partners. Statistics Estonia is a part of the EU statistical system, contributing to the development of international statistics.

Our core values

The accomplishment of our mission and the goals defined in the development plan is supported by Statistics Estonia’s three core values, drawn up and updated with the whole organisation in mind, in cooperation with all staff. 

1. Reliability

We ensure the protection and confidentiality of the data submitted to us. We produce statistics independently and with a solid methodology that is publicly available to everyone. We respect deadlines. We explain the societal phenomena in simple terms and offer the relevant additional information. Our statistics are up-to-date and always covered by the media. We are experts in our field, recognised in Estonia and internationally.

2. Cooperation

We take into account the needs of our customers, partners, and colleagues, and work together well. We are helpful, open, and straightforward when communicating and sharing information. We praise each other and celebrate our common achievements.

3. Innovation

We are eager to find new solutions, to experiment, and to put ideas into practice. We are not afraid of failure, we are curious and constantly improving ourselves. Our statistical applications bring new value to users. We apply innovative methods and technological solutions of data science and statistics, building on our own ideas and those of our partners.

Our principles

In addition to our core values, we are guided by the principles of customer centricity, service orientation, and environmental sustainability, and we are characterised by independence, openness, data focus, high quality (including timeliness), and efficiency.

1. Customer centricity
   For us it means, above all, monitoring key customer groups and mapping their needs before any developments or decisions are made and measuring their satisfaction. Statistics Estonia's job is to ensure secure and convenient access to data and information. We design our services around the needs of our users. We support and advise our customers both in submitting data and in using the data we provide.
2. Service orientation
   Service orientation is the principle in our activities whereby our services are holistically managed across all elements of a particular service. Services must create value for their users and have clear owners or persons in charge who ensure the involvement of different stakeholders in the development and delivery of a service, both inside and outside Statistics Estonia. We also manage resources on a service basis.
3. Environmental sustainability
   The principle is reflected in our day-to-day activities and in our development work. For instance, we refrain from creating new datasets and offer solutions where data are processed at the data owners' premises. We are applying the once-only principle in data collection and focusing on reuse of data. We are also optimising data processing and workflow and technological solutions for data storage. These steps will also make us more efficient and more customer-friendly. 

While customer centricity and environmental sustainability can be applied to all our activities and decisions, service orientation is applied where it makes sense in terms of organisation and management, generates further value, and ensures coherence with the work of other public authorities or planning processes.