Pathfinder: e-Estonia as the β-version

Abstract

Estonia is often presented as the leading Digital Governance country globally, but this is not backed up by any of the standard rankings. This essay attempts to answer why this is so, by demonstrating that while the official communications strategy of the Estonian Government emphasizes the country's role as a pathfinder, global media demand, and some of the local protagonists also push, the perfection narrative. This is partially related to the specific historical and geopolitical situation of Estonia, and the subsequent local attitude towards the (Nation) State, which renders (since it is rather unique) the Estonian overall model of only limited use for e-policy transfer.