TALLINN

Tallinn is the capital city of Estonia. It’s situated on the northern coast of the country, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland. Tallinn is one of the best preserved medieval cities in Europe and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is the country’s main economic, transportation, and cultural centre. Since the Middle Ages, Tallinn has been a bridge between the East and West, being a crossroads for trade and diplomacy. It is famous for its astounding medieval architecture and modern structures that stand side by side to complement each other. Some of the places that make it famous include the amazing ancient buildings, Toompea Castle, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Tallinn TV Tower and Kadriorg Palace.

Census in Estonia is done after every 10 years and 2011 was the last time that it was conducted. The next census is scheduled for 2021 in Estonia. According to the 2011 census, Tallinn had a population of 437,619. Compared to other cities in Estonia, Tallinn is considered to be more diverse. According to the 2011 census, 68.7% of the population is Estonians based in Tallinn while across Estonia amounted to 69.7%. This is due to many people moving away from the city center. When it comes to religious beliefs, Tallinn is known to be diverse as most people identify themselves as Orthodox Christians, Lutherans and non-religious. According to the data collected during the 2011 census, 16.15% people in Tallinn identified themselves as Orthodox Christians, 9.91% as Lutherans, 54.14% as non-religious and 19.8% of respondents declared that they followed other religions. Tallinn houses over 437,619 residents, who collectively speak over 100 languages, including Estonian, Russian, Ukrainian, English and Finnish. Tallinn is known for its well preserved medieval old town, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city boasts of a vibrant tech scene with numerous start-ups operating out of the city.

Tallinn is governed by the Tallinn City Council which is a representative body elected by the citizens for four years. The City Council appoints the City Government, which is an executive body formed by the Mayor. The Mayor is elected by the City Council and he then appoints the deputy mayors. The City Government manages and governs the city’s daily operations and implements the laws and regulations of the city. The city is divided into 8 administrative districts to provide better services and ensure necessary living and working conditions for the citizens. Each district is governed by an Elder, who is appointed by the City Government.

Tallinn has always been a commercial city and today enjoys the status of having one of the largest city economies in Estonia. The city thrives in trade and commerce and has a vibrant culture seeped in commerce. It has a GDP of about €15 billion, which is about 50 percent of Estonia's total GDP. The size of its economy is larger than that of several European nations. Tallinn's Port handles 20 million tons of cargo every year.

Tallinn has made significant progress in its infrastructure plan 2035. The Mayor of Tallinn took a big step forward in planning for growth with the publication of Tallinn’s Infrastructure Plan 2035. It identifies a range of infrastructure priorities for Tallinn, from new energy, water and sewerage infrastructure, to enhanced digital connectivity and new road, rail and sea transport schemes. Some of the investment is provided by the private sector, through the privatized utilities. This has generally worked well in Tallinn, although business is particularly concerned at the lack of capacity in digital infrastructure. The take-up of high speed broadband by business is high compared to other European cities; and just over 3% of premises cannot access superfast broadband in the first place.

Tallinn is one of the most technologically advanced cities in Europe. It has a huge number of financial transactions that take place electronically each day through it financial services industry. Because Tallinn relies on its tech and financial sector so much, it has invested heavily in its communications infrastructure, and continues to do so, under the auspices of its private IT sector and other partners, such as the city of Tallinn. However, the technology industry that is part of Tallinn's economy is not simply there to support the financial services sector. It is a big player in its own right.