Estonia’s startup success has been driven by a wide support network that helps entrepreneurs develop ideas, access mentorship, secure connections and grow their businesses, Latitude59 CEO Liisi Org has said, urging Kenya to strengthen its own ecosystem while building on its unique advantages.
Org said Estonia had mapped about 150 organisations supporting startups, ranging from incubators and accelerators to co-working spaces, event organisers and professional service providers.
Speaking to Radio Generation on Friday, she said the organisations play a key role in supporting Estonia’s growing startup sector, which she estimated at about 1,700 companies.
The latest official figures from Startup Estonia show that the country had about 1,600 startups by the end of 2024. The sector recorded €3.9 billion in turnover that year, representing a 15 per cent increase, while startups paid €750 million in taxes.
Startup Estonia also reported that the sector generated an estimated €1.8 billion in added value in 2024, equal to 4.3 per cent of Estonia’s gross domestic product.
Org said the links between entrepreneurs, support organisations, investors and other players have helped strengthen Estonia’s startup environment, especially for founders at the beginning of their journey.
“When you start, you are anyway kind of lonely. You need help, and I would say that the incubators and accelerators are the first place to go.”
She said incubators give entrepreneurs a place to build their businesses while learning from mentors and other founders, whereas accelerators focus on helping companies expand at a faster pace.
“An incubator is mostly like a place where companies incubate. So like get together, learn from each other, learn from mentors,” she said.
“But accelerator is kind of like fast forward. So it's like we accelerate you further, and sometimes accelerators also invest into companies.”
According to Org, accelerator programmes can also help startups meet investors and possible business partners as they prepare to expand.
She also pointed to government backing for innovation as another factor behind Estonia’s startup growth, saying public institutions have shown a willingness to try new ideas and test new technologies.
“Estonian government is mega supportive of innovation and startups and like let's bring in totally new idea and they test it and pilot it and government is open to that,” she maintained.
Estonia has built a strong technology sector despite having a relatively small population. The country ranked 12th globally in the 2026 StartupBlink Global Startup Ecosystem Index, with its startup ecosystem growing by 8.8 per cent over the previous year.
The sector recorded €1.173 billion in turnover in the third quarter of 2025, taking its turnover for the first three quarters of the year to €3.53 billion. Startup employment stood at 15,023 during the quarter.
Despite Estonia’s progress, Org said Kenya should not seek to copy the country’s approach wholesale, noting that startup ecosystems develop according to their own circumstances.
“I definitely don't want to replicate anything. I think all ecosystems are very unique, and Kenya has its own strengths,” she stated.
She said Kenya’s large and young population gives the country an advantage, particularly because it offers a wide pool of entrepreneurs and technology users.
“Estonia maybe has the middles, but Africa and countries have the scale. So here you have a lot of young people who are very talented, who want to learn, who want to understand what is happening and what is possible.”
Kenya already has an established technology and innovation sector. StartupBlink ranks Kenya first in East Africa and 61st globally in its 2026 ecosystem rankings, with Nairobi ranked first in the country and 116th globally.
The country has also developed a strong position in agricultural technology. Briter’s 2025 assessment showed that Kenya accounted for 58 per cent of AgTech funding in East Africa, reflecting existing infrastructure and investor interest in digital solutions for farmers.
Org said Kenyan entrepreneurs should continue developing ideas while engaging potential users early to establish whether their products or services meet a real need before seeking investment.
“I would say that the ideas are great. People have to be bold and go and talk to a lot of other people to actually get this information back from them,” she said.
Latitude59 has meanwhile continued to serve as a link between technology communities in Africa and Europe. Its 2026 edition in Tallinn attracted more than 3,000 founders, investors and technology players from 70 countries, including 600 investors and 800 startup representatives.
The conference is set to hold its Nairobi edition on December 3–4, 2026, extending the platform’s role in connecting startup ecosystems across regions.
For Org, the goal is not to make Kenya another Estonia, but to create opportunities for the two ecosystems to exchange knowledge, capital and networks while allowing each country to build around its own strengths.