EIS school exam chaos brings state agency Harno under spotlight

Harno falls under the Ministry of Education and Research's remit and was set up nearly five years ago, after the merger of four separate educational institutions.
Harno currently employs nearly 400 people and has a 2024 operating budget of one hundred million euros.
Among its other responsibilities, Harno conducts state school entry exams, level tests, language exams, and citizenship tests and oversees the substantive aspects of the Examination Information System (EIS).
Director General Jaak Raie (pictured) in October last year signed a document which set the average monthly wage for a first-level specialist at Harno at €1,200, for a mid-level specialist at €1,655, and for a chief specialist, €1,975.
The average monthly wages for a first-level manager were set at €2,365, for a department head €3,500, and for a top executive €5,500 (all figures gross).
The agency's budget was €75.9 million last year, but rose to €99.4 million this year. Of this sum, a significant portion, €81 million, derives from external funding; nearly €18 million came from the state budget.
The state's contribution to Harno's activities decreased by more than €3 million this year compared with last year, while the share of external funding rose significantly, from the €55 million the previous year.
Harno spokesperson Tiina Nõmm said: "The rise in external funding results from activities under the EU's new budgetary period, which has increased the external funding managed by Harno. These funds support initiatives such as the green skills program, the IT academy program and the engineering academy."
The green skills program for the years 2023-2026 aims to support the development of skills necessary for businesses' green transition, and has a program budget of €15 million.
The IT Academy is a cooperative program involving the state, universities, vocational schools and IT firms, and is aimed at developing the sector.
The goal of the engineering academy is to align education with labor market needs in the fields of technology, production, and construction.
From 2023 to 2029, the Estonian state will direct a total of €61.5 million in structural funds to the engineering and IT academies.
Approximately €36 million of this year's external funding is, according to Nõmm, allocated towards activities under Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps Agency, enabling both learners and education sector workers to participate in mobility projects.
According to the 2022 annual report, 91 percent of Harno employees were women, at an average age of 44. The average service tenure at the time was six years.
Harno implements Estonian education and youth policies and was created on August 1, 2020, by merging the following organizations: SA Innove, the IT for education foundation (Hariduse Infotehnoloogia SA), SA Archimedes, and the Estonian youth work center (Eesti Noorsootöö Keskus).
Previously, Innove had coordinated general and vocational education sectors and offered career counseling via the Rajaleidja ("Pathfinder") network.
Archimedes managed international education and scientific cooperation programs.
The Estonian youth work center directed and organized youth work, while the IT for education foundation organized competitions and training sessions and managed IT services.
As of April 11, Harno has 394 employees on payroll.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Karin Koppel