eesti keeles

Speeches
Open in print mode

Speech by the President of the Republic "Role of Agricultural Science in Development of Economy" at the Ukrainian Academy of Agriculture, on October 15, 2002
15.10.2002


Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am very glad to have today the chance of introducing to you briefly both these changes which have taken place in Estonia's economy, notably in agriculture and agricultural science, and the future prospect of the latter. As for myself, this subject is very close to my heart because I have done my doctorate in agricultural sciences and as rector for eight years led Estonia's only agricultural university in Tartu.

In order to understand the present day, we first have to take a look back at those times a decade ago when Estonia had restored its independence, which at the same time meant beginning of fundamental changes to our economic system. For now, Estonia belongs to these countries, which, with some circumspection, are supposed to have left the transition behind.

We have created a democracy with rule of law and liberal market economy. Along with foreign investments, new management techniques and manufacturing technologies have been introduced. The structure of Estonia's economy is quite different from what it was ten years ago.

The changes are conspicuously, one could even say - painfully, mirrored in our agricultural sector. In the early 1990s, transition to production based on private property took place. Soviet-time high subsidies were abolished. Our eastern market dwindled step by step. In the outcome the Estonian producer was exposed to the market of free competition.

For today, agricultural production's proportion of Estonia's GDP has dropped from former 20% beneath 4%, albeit our food industry adds to that the same percentage. Today, only less than 5% of our working population are engaged in agriculture, that is 30,000 persons or almost three times less than ten years ago. Nevertheless, agriculture - to the Estonians a vital area of life since times immemorial - has retained its decisive role in providing the population with basic food, promoting enterprise in rural areas and shaping cultural landscapes.

For the Estonian farmer the situation is aggravated by unilateral openness of the food market. Due to that, strongly subsidized products from EU countries have free access to our internal market. It is true that the conditions of our trade with the European Union have improved over the last years, but still our imports are growing more rapidly than exports.

The biggest challenge to our country including our farmers and food industrialists has been our ambition to become a full member of the European Union. To this end, we had to take over the principles and laws of the European Union's common agricultural policy. Our production and processing have been brought into line with relevant requirements of the European Union.

This, in turn, has made us to introduce the EU system of market regulation, to regulate food imports and exports, and to support development of rural regions. We have to put in use veterinary and phyto-sanitary controls complying with pertinent requirements. All of this has demanded from us major investments.

The key question is how to adapt to these changes and to stay competitive also in long-term prospect being already a member state of the European Union. The existence of today's farmers has come to directly depend on their ability to harness new technologies based on scientific knowledge. Yet the Estonian agricultural scientists, on their part, must be capable of offering the optimum solutions tailored to the conditions in Estonia.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Before expanding on the development of agricultural science in Estonia, I would like to give a few words of introduction on general trends of the Estonian system of research and development.

In our vision of future, Estonia is a knowledge-based society in which research and development are the main prerequisites of society functioning and progressing. Attempting to create prerequisites for this kind of society to emerge, we have reformed our structure of research and development, and made the Estonian research system to be centred on universities. We have planned to increase the total expenditure on research and development up to 1,5% of our GDP by the year 2006. But, to guarantee prospects for a long-term rapid advancement, this percentage should be doubled.

However, growth of expenditure's efficiency is not less important than increase in total expenditure. First of all, the proportion of funding research and development prescribed by the state must change. Hitherto, the expenditures on research make up 90% and on development 10%. But in future, these proportions should be 60 and 40% respectively. On top of that, we should strive for an increase of the private sector's share in funding research and development.

Estonia as a small nation has attempted to invest its resources in a most optimal way. For this purpose, three key areas of science already having development potential in Estonia have been selected: user-friendly information technologies and promotion of information society, biomedicine and materials technology.

Also the agricultural sciences having in earlier decades convincingly proven its potential have yet to struggle to attain its place in the contemporary world of science.

During Estonia's independence, the agricultural sciences have predominantly been developing in the way of self-regulation, but a development plan clearly expressing national interests in this field should soon be presented to the government. According to this development strategy's vision, the results of agricultural research and related disciplines must guarantee an economical and productive use of natural resources, ensure the preservation of an environment worth living in, and increase the quality of life.

Considering our limited resources, it is impossible to have success in all areas of agricultural science. We can make our needs and possibilities match only while setting ourselves clear-cut goals and defining priorities directed toward future. For this reason, I believe that with regard to the rules of market economy, our research should back above all production branches having a competitive advantage, which in the Estonian case are production of milk, beef, pork and grain, organic farming and different alternative lines of production.

In Soviet times, a scientific and genetic potential was created in the mentioned branches of agriculture enabling us to reach high standards also under the present conditions. This is confirmed, first of all, by a continuously increasing productivity of our dairy cattle - one of our most competitive branches of agriculture. We can be proud of the fact that lately, for the first time in history, the average milk yield exceeded the 5,000-kg-line. In many big farms equipped with modern technologies, having high standard pedigree cattle and well-balanced foddering, the milk yield has even crossed 8,000 kg and - we do not regard it as the ceiling. In South-Eastern Estonia, there is an agricultural co-operative having 900 Holstein-Frisian cows, which, in 2002, yielded an average of over 9,000 kg milk. As for the dairy cattle of Maasikmäe, an average milk yield of 10,400 kg has been reached. Achievements like these are due to a modern breeding based on long-time research and international co-operation carried out on co-operative basis.

In Estonia, along with breeding of dairy cattle, we have succeeded also in preserving breeding of domestic grain varieties. Despite modest use of fertilizers and pesticides, a situation which could even be equalled to organic farming, the productiveness of grain has stabilized at the level of 2,1 metric tons per hectare. Yet in our best farms and private enterprises, crops of more than 4 metric tons per hectare are steadily achieved.

We believe that the European Union's system of agricultural subsidies will enable us to improve on production technologies and conditions still more, and thus, to apply the results of agricultural research on a broader scale.

Depending on the outcome of defining fields and priorities of research, Estonia is also facing a reorganization of its structure of agricultural science. At present, a uniform network of experimental stations and laboratories that is going to serve both state inspectorates and research institutions is being created.

The number of institutes engaged in agricultural research - compared with the beginning of our independence period - has fallen significantly. The Estonian Agricultural University (former Estonian Agricultural Academy), that last year celebrated its 50th anniversary, continues to play an important role in developing Estonia's agricultural science.

Like all other universities, the Agricultural University too, has to keep pace with changes in the scene of higher education and to make efforts to offer competitive higher education. Therefore, the Estonian Agricultural University is facing continuing reorganisation aiming at improvement of leadership qualities and public activities, enhancement of integration of research and development et cetera. Its new curricula have been developed on the basis of the Bologna Declaration's 3+2 system establishing a three-year undergraduate cycle followed by a two-year graduate cycle. In addition, a new structure of fields of study has been worked out.

In Estonia, higher education is continuously held in high regard. This has also been demonstrated by strong competition for the state-funded places at the Agricultural University. In the department of cattle breeding too, there were over four applications per place. This raises our hopes that the development of agricultural sciences continues which helps Estonia to advance towards sustainability and balance.

Thank you for your attention.


© 2006 Office of the President l tel: + 372 631 6202 l fax: + 372 631 6250 l sekretarvpk.ee