Estonia, like many countries around the world, is facing a serious demographic decline.

Experts warn that the small country has just a few years to reverse the trend.

The government is being encouraged to take action to spur more people to embrace families and parenthood.

Motivating people to move from cities to smaller communities, quoting economic geography research that associates higher fertility rates with rural areas. “When people are packed into small city apartments, birth rates inevitably drop,” Eamets said. According to the economist, a detached home with a safe yard could ensure the type of environment that encourages larger families. (This rings true; in the U.S., some city planners have created zoning laws (often referred to as "vasectomy zoning") that only allow small apartments, banning units with three or more bedrooms as a means of coercive population control, making it intentionally difficult for families with children to live there.)

Stronger government participation in regional development, including financial incentives and favorable loan terms for constructing homes outside key urban centers. He continued that such measures would not merely boost population growth, but also bolster national security if more citizens settled down in southeastern regions like Setomaa. 

Adopting proactive steps to encourage families to have a third child. “That's something some political parties have tried to do. But then it gets rolled back and maybe later reversed again," he said. "This kind of back-and-forth undermines confidence. If we've agreed on family policy measures, they should stay in place for a while because children aren't born overnight — it takes planning. We need stability."

Estonia, like many countries around the world, is facing a serious demographic decline.

Experts warn that the small country has just a few years to reverse the trend.

The government is being encouraged to take action to spur more people to embrace families and parenthood.

Motivating people to move from cities to smaller communities, quoting economic geography research that associates higher fertility rates with rural areas. “When people are packed into small city apartments, birth rates inevitably drop,” Eamets said. According to the economist, a detached home with a safe yard could ensure the type of environment that encourages larger families. (This rings true; in the U.S., some city planners have created zoning laws (often referred to as "vasectomy zoning") that only allow small apartments, banning units with three or more bedrooms as a means of coercive population control, making it intentionally difficult for families with children to live there.)

Stronger government participation in regional development, including financial incentives and favorable loan terms for constructing homes outside key urban centers. He continued that such measures would not merely boost population growth, but also bolster national security if more citizens settled down in southeastern regions like Setomaa. 

Adopting proactive steps to encourage families to have a third child. “That's something some political parties have tried to do. But then it gets rolled back and maybe later reversed again," he said. "This kind of back-and-forth undermines confidence. If we've agreed on family policy measures, they should stay in place for a while because children aren't born overnight — it takes planning. We need stability."