The Foreign Ministry helps Estonian companies take their smart health solutions to the world

During the coronavirus crisis, several Estonian companies producing smart digital solutions have received support from the Foreign Ministry in entering foreign markets. All companies that have contacted the Foreign Ministry, including during the crisis, have been put in touch with useful contacts through foreign missions and a network of business diplomats. Estonia’s e-health solutions have attracted international attention and several specific projects have found cooperation partners on foreign markets thanks to the Foreign Ministry even amid the crisis.

According to Andres Rundu, the Undersecretary for External Economic Policy and Development Cooperation, there is currently a greater demand for innovative health solutions due to the coronavirus crisis. “The solutions of several companies that have contacted us have been put into practice abroad thanks to the joint efforts of the business diplomacy and development cooperation divisions of the Foreign Ministry. The experience of Estonian companies in creating flexible digital solutions makes it possible for Estonia to stand out in many parts of the world. For example, in addition to e-health, the mobile clinics of Semetron have also attracted attention during the crisis,” Rundu said.  

Thanks to the Kenya Red Cross, the CoNurse solution by the company Cognuse will soon be applied, allowing access to all workflows of nurses from smartphones by voice recognition and offering smart support to medical staff with limited experience. In the framework of the same project, the TempID smart thermometer that allows to measure temperature from a distance will be made available.

According to the CEO and founder of Cognuse Andres Mellik, the cooperation with the Kenya Red Cross, launched with the help and on the initiative of the Foreign Ministry, makes it possible to use the CoNurse application in a completely new setting. “In terms of impact, now it is particularly important to support the populations of patients and health professionals that are the most vulnerable due to the crisis. We consider it an additional benefit that due to the travel restrictions currently in place, we are carrying out most of the activities of our project from a distance, which allows us to develop a new model for creating client relations based on trust and applying solutions,” Mellik said.

The playful solution Triumf that educates children on health behaviour entered Germany’s development cooperation hackathon thanks to the Foreign Ministry and was selected among the 20 best solutions from 1000 entries, and a cooperation project in Latin America is being planned. The meditation application Synctuition, created by Estonians and available free of charge in Estonia, has also gained international attention.

Companies interested in specific foreign markets are welcome to contact the Foreign Ministry to discuss cooperation possibilities. To ensure more efficient support, it would be helpful if the entrepreneurs already had an idea which markets interest them, which product they wish to export (what is the product, where is it in use already, what are its advantages and what makes it stand out) and why this product could fit the particular market.

Additional information:
Mari Krusten
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Media Adviser
Communication Department
+372 637 7618; +372 524 0742
www.vm.ee