Within four years, around 6,000 new nonprofit organizations were registered in Estonia, the final report of the Civic Initiative Support Development Plan 2007-2010 reveals.
The significant increase in grassroots organizations is a clear sign of the maturity of the society, said Minister of Regional Affairs Siim Kiisler, after introducing the report to the Cabinet last week.
In 2007, a total of 24,164 nonprofit organizations were listed as registered in Estonia. By the end of last year the figure had risen to 31,208.
The number of cooperation projects between government agencies and NGOs has also grown, with the exchanging of information and collaboration between the two sectors becoming broader and more systematic, according to the report.
The establishment of the state’s National Foundation of Civic Society in 2008 has been an important factor for increasing the numbers of non-profits. Around 250 projects have been supported through the foundation, with the allocations totaling at 4.4 million euros, said Kiisler.
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