Why has Viimsi become the wealthiest community in post‐socialist Estonia?

Tomi Ovaska () and Robert B. Anderson

International Journal of Development Issues, 2010, vol. 9, issue 2, 146-166

Abstract: Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to present a qualitative study of economic development attempts to uncover the critical factors behind the recent economic rise of Viimsi, Estonia, to that of the wealthiest community in the country. Design/methodology/approach - The roles of and interactions among various community stakeholder groups are explored through two sets of resident surveys. From these surveys, and a rich set of secondary material, a narrative emerges as to the factors behind Viimsi's success since 1991, when Estonia regained its independence from the former Soviet Union and its system of economic central planning. Findings - It was found that among the key components explaining why Viimsi has become the wealthiest community in Estonia are its extraordinary openness in embracing the market system, combined with a consensus‐based plan among community stakeholders on balanced development, a dependable government, and a level of solidarity among fellow residents in facing change. Originality/value - This paper describes one small community's experience in the global world, and offers observations on successful strategies for a community navigating in it.

Keywords: Economic development; Entrepreneurialism; Estonia; Globalization; Market system (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:ijdipp:v:9:y:2010:i:2:p:146-166

DOI: 10.1108/14468951011062345

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