Estonians Are Getting Old. How to Change It?

Estonia is getting older – or, at least, that is what the Estonian Human Resources Report shows. In 40 years, almost a ½ will be the ratio of the elderly compared to those in working age. Nowadays the ratio level is ¼.

According to a recently published report, among the reasons of the general ageing of the population there is the birth rate, which is below the productive level, together with a negative migration balance (more people leaving than coming and staying in Estonia) and finally a high premature death rate.

The report underlines that, if the same trends will be confirmed during the coming years, by 2050 there will be about 100,000 elderly people more than in the present year.  Estonia population will also witness a reduction due to the age structure and low rates regarding births and immigration.

The Estonian Human Resources report proposes some solutions in order to stop the future negative impact that this trend could have in the next years and these are financial stability for families with children and better childcare options.

Also the report focuses on the labor relations for parents with small kids. In their opinion the State should enable more flexible working hours and facilitate and support parents that after a parenthood break would want to come back to the labor market.

There are a few recommendations in the report regarding health care. Decreasing the deaths in traffic accidents as well in other accidents is a key factor for changing this tendency, as the editors of the report underlay. Limiting the access to alcohol is also a recommended measure.