2. A small and heavily forested countryThe most northerly of the three Baltic republics of the former Soviet UnionTotal area: 45,226 sq kmPopulation: 1.35 millionGovernment type: Parliamentary democracyAdministrative division: 15 counties (called „maakonnad“)
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6. Natural resources Of Estonia are development-friendly building materials industry. The country has large deposits of limestone and dolomite, various clays, silica sand, gravel.
7. Estonia’s location is ideal for the creation of efficient transportation links and distribution chains for goods and services for European and other international companies.
8. The lion’s share of transportation income,comes from internationaltransit and port services. Operator services are mostly provided by private enterprises. Sea transport, inter-urban bus traffic and air traffic are all organized by private companies.
9. Estonia is a country with well-developed touristic infrastructure.Every year a number of firms providing touristic servicesincreasing, but due to financial crisis 2008,some of them went to bankrupt
10. Negative economic climate impacts travel and tourism in Estonia After a period of steady growth, the economy of Estonia slowed down in 2008, which prompted a change in consumer spending and thus a downturn in the property market. Currency devaluation resulted in increased inflation, which prompted consumers to cut back on their expenditure, thus resulting in decreased demand, and this in turn impacted travel and tourism. Inbound tourism flows to Estonia were also influenced by the global economic crisis. Air faces restructuring due to slowdown in the economy The economic recession and its impact on travel and tourism had a significant impact on the environment in air, as leading operators sought to implement cost-saving measures. Many of them opted for restructuring plans, which included a significant reduction in the number of ground staff handling passenger registration and luggage as well as pre- and post- flight customer service. Another element of this restructuring was the purchase of smaller aircraft, to optimize flight capacity.
11. Strong potential for travel and tourism Estonia possesses strong potential for the further development of travel and tourism, particularly in terms of conferences. The Estonian Association of Travel Agents and the Estonia Hotel and Restaurant Association are working together with government bodies to promote conference tourism in Tallinn. There are plans for the establishment of new conference halls in the Sakala Centre and in Tallinn City Hall.
12. Media Although the harsh economic crisis that hit Estonia in 2008 and deepened through 2009 also influenced the media, the country continued to have a free and functional media landscape. The recently established media company, Kalev Media, went bankrupt early in the year and two Russian-language newspapers also stopped publishing. But, overall the main media outlets, both electronic and print-based, managed to survive the crisis and falling advertising revenues. Overall, the media remained free of political influence; although in some instances the CP used its position as the governing party in Tallinn to finance public information media that often contained explicitly biased political messages.
13. Estonia has a ruputation for being at the cutting edge of technology.By June 2010,nearly 970 000 Estonians – 75% of the population – were ising the internet. The coutry held the world s first parliamentary “ e – vote“ in 2007.
14. Although crisis affect was significant on global economy, Estonia’s business attitude towards the EU is positive and business relations between the EU and Estonia are increasingly significant. Over the next several years, major growth is likely in: services, especially telecommunications and financial, construction, transportation andtourism.
