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The President of the Republic at the closing ceremony of the training project Look @World in Tallinn, Hotel Radisson SAS on 17 April 200417.04.2004
Ladies and gentlemen,
One commendable far-reaching undertaking is coming to end since the objectives set at its start have been successfully met. Two years ago, the Look @World Foundation launched this large project designed to provide one hundred thousand people free training in use of computers and Internet. 315 teachers working at 260 locations all over Estonia were involved into this work. The project took 40 million kroons donated by project partners. While measuring the results of the project, one should take notice of a very high assessment given by the trainees themselves: 4,8 points on a five-point scale.
Look @World has enabled many good people to learn skills, which help them to cope better with life's challenges and improve their competitiveness in the labour market. Look @World has helped reduce regional inequalities and encouraged also small villages to strive for progress.
As patron of this training project, I would like to thank from my heart all those who have contributed to the success of this large project encompassing the whole of Estonia. I thank the authors and implementers of the project as well as all those who under the guidance of best expert teachers acquired new knowledge.
I acknowledge the contribution of private sector to the promotion of Look @World and to schooling representatives of different generations. This was an investment in future - in the quality of the people's life in general as well as in specialists, on whose skills Estonia's further development and performance depend, in particular.
However, I urge all of you to remember that although we today mark the end of a great job, we should still carry it on before too long. Of course, that is not an easy task - quite the opposite. And it doesn't matter in which direction we proceed with the project, it means in any case facing new challenges and duties posed to Estonia by our rapidly changing world and, no doubt, also by our membership of the European Union.
We have reached a certain kind of stability but we must not rest on our laurels. For our initial progress and recognition given us hitherto can easily vanish into thin air. In the world surrounding us, there are scores of countries, which have far more people and funds for development than our small Estonia.
Yet, the future development requires from us even more complex approach than so far. To continue raising the high level of development already reached, we have to strive, apart from utilizing technological possibilities, for increasing innovation awareness and improving people's sense of security in social terms. If Estonia's holistic development is what we really want then - we cannot gauge it by the success of a few separate projects only. In order to improve the Estonian life, we need close cooperation between many people and well-designed concurrent influence of several undertakings.
Rapidly increasing possibilities of using computers offer new opportunities both to linguists and farmers, both to physicians and drivers. Today's Internet connection provides us access to global communication and is at the same time a commendable model for building civil society. Estonia has the potential to serve as an example of how to bridge the digital divide between different population groups and thus, to enable all people to become active members of society - irrespective of their place of residence, climate or availability of transport services.
There is a proverb saying that one should water the plant, which is already growing and bearing fruits. And so I hope our state to be farsighted enough in putting into practice future visions, so as to enable to carry on this project by capitalizing on the opportunities opening to EU Member States. Because nearly half a million individuals are still awaiting their chance, and it means that this process can be both widened and deepened.
I would like to thank once more all sponsors of the Look @World as well as all the others who have given their support to the project. I hope the today's trainees soon to become trainers of others, and wish you for that purpose perseverance, good will and energy. It's just an Estonian tradition that skills and knowledge have always been passed on from generation to generation.
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