Eesti in brief - 2011-10-06

  • 2011-10-05

Every fourth Estonian who has left the country to study, work or live abroad will return to Estonia, estimates the Tartu University Center for Studies of Expatriate Estonians, reports National Broadcasting. “I cannot pinpoint the exact data, but a very crude calculation that can be pointed out for Finnish data is that around every fourth person who has left has come back,” said Tiit Tammaru from the center. The so-called expatriated Estonian community is estimated to reach around 125,000 people. Tammaru said that changes have taken place in their geographical distribution. While before WWII and after that, large communities of expatriated Estonians emerged in Russia, America and Sweden, in the past ten years a lot of Estonians have left for Finland. Supporting the Estonian spirit abroad was discussed at a co-patriates conference in Tallinn.

According to Statistics Estonia, by Sept. 15, 96 percent of the sown area of cereals, 75 percent of the sown area of rape and turnip rape, and 49 percent of the area of potatoes had been harvested in Estonia, reports LETA. Compared to the previous year, harvesting has progressed at quite a similar pace this year. The yield per hectare of the harvesting area is slightly higher than last year. According to preliminary data, in 2011 cereals were grown on 299,000 hectares, of which 96 percent has been harvested for grain. One hectare of the harvested area gave on average 2.7 tons of cereals. Rape and turnip rape were grown on 89,100 hectares. Potatoes were grown on 9,200 hectares.