Crisis management

According to the Emergency Act, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications must organise the continuity of four vital services:

1. telephone service,
2. mobile phone service,
3. data communication service and
4. electronic identification and digital signature.

Together with the most important companies operating in the sector, it is necessary to ensure that the service works consistently in any situation for as long as possible, and if the service is interrupted in certain situations, it can be quickly restored.

In order for both companies and society as a whole to know at what level they should respond in each situation and how quickly service can be restored, continuity requirements have been established for each service. If you are interested, you can read about them on the Riigi Teataja (State Gazette) website.

The task for companies is to consider, through risk analysis of their own operations and plan, what risks may jeopardise the provision of their service, how these risks can be prevented or mitigated, and what needs to be done to restore the service in the event of a disruption. Instructions for preparing a risk analysis and plan can be found on the website of the Government Office.

In the event that the interruption of a vital service cannot be restored within the allowed time and/or it harms the life or health of many people, causes great property damage, great environmental damage or leads to serious and extensive disruptions in other vital services, then the resulting emergency situation must be managed at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications. This includes developing situational awareness, exchanging information with involved partners, coordinating activities, informing the public, etc. 

In the case of solving an emergency situation arising from the drivability of national roads, this role is played by the Estonian Transport Administration, and the Estonian Information System Authority solves the emergency situation of electronic personal identification and digital signature. At the same time, close cooperation is also carried out with other emergency management agencies, such as the Rescue Board, the Police and Border Guard Board, etc.

In addition, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications must also organise the functioning of other sectors of its area of governance (e.g. transport, business, etc.) at a level essential to society in various crisis situations and support the provision of military national defence.