Available funding in Estonia
Background information
Funding opportunities for upskilling and reskilling to support the digital competences of individuals and organizations are available in form of loans, grants and financial instruments. For the period 2021 – 2026 most of the activities in digital transformation are financed through Recovery and Resilience facility but also as activities in Horizon, Erasmus+, ESIF and EEA grant schemes. You may find more on the page of Estonian Recovery and Resilience website.
Recovery and resilience facility
The Estonian Recovery and Resilience Plan contains a measure for the digitalization of enterprises. By 2026, it is anticipated that 58 million euros will be invested to provide financial support for digitalization to 230 small and medium-sized enterprises. Moreover, the RRP includes specific measures for the digitalisation of the construction industry (9 million EUR) and the road freight industry (6 million EUR), also planned is assistance for Estonian firms, particularly ICT firms, with their international and export strategies.
Estonia's recovery and resilience plan supports the digital transition with investments and reforms, particularly in the areas of digitalising companies (€83 million), including small, medium, and micro businesses; digitalising the public administration (€97 million), with measures aiming to upgrade digital government services using the latest technologies to improve their resilience, security, and efficiency, and to reduce the administrative burden for both citizens and businesses.
To foster the Digital transformation of businesses by end-2025, the Recovery and Resilience Facility finances support to SMEs and micro-enterprises with EUR 58 million. The related call for proposals was published in 2022. It covers the adoption of digital technologies, the development of industrial data clouds, industrial research, development, testing and piloting activities, feasibility studies, advisory and support services, and training of staff.
Providing labour market measures to reduce youth unemployment with EUR 10 million for at least 3,178 young people between 16 and 29 years old, registered as unemployed with no or only short-termed work experience participate in the “My first job” scheme by end-2025. The objective of the scheme is to encourage the acquisition of work experience and the growth of work-related skills and knowledge by young people in order to increase their competitiveness on the labour market and reduce youth unemployment. The scheme has two components: a wage subsidy paid to the employer and reimbursement of a young person's training expenses.
National Funding
Kood/Jõhvi, is a remote educational institution which offers a 2-year programme, free of charge, to people without IT background to become full-stack developers. Through collaborative project-based learning, participants are prepared for the real-world working environment over the course of a two-year programme designed to future-proof their careers. During the study, they provide laptops, monitors, keyboards, and mice to the participants. In 2021, they trained 200 students, followed by 300 in 2022. In 2023 and 2024, they are continuing with applications and training.
Digiriigi Akadeemiasse (Digital State Academy) aims to raise the digital knowledge and skills levels among civil servants, although courses are open for everybody. The courses are available free of charge and are intended for all interested parties who want to learn more about the digitally empowered digital state and its development.
On the website of Riigi Tugiteenuste Keskus (National Support Center) are published open calls for different national and international funding. Various subsidies are also mediated by the Center for Environmental Investments and the Enterprise and Innovation Foundation (joint institution of Kredex and EAS).
Different funding options are also available on the Digital Skills and Jobs platform, you may find a listing for Estonia on this link.
