Daniel Erik Schaer 🇪🇪

Estonian Ambassador to Kenya 🇰🇪 and South Africa 🇿🇦 - Ambassador at large for Africa 🇪🇪🌍

[Estonian MFA 🇪🇪 | 🌻 #StandWithUkraine @MFAestonia]

Today, we celebrate 142 years of Estonia's beloved blue-black-white flag.

Marked with the traditional flag-raising ceremony at Pikk Hermann Tower, the day honours a symbol that ties together our past, present and future.

💙🖤🤍

[Ambassador Jonatan Vseviov @vseviov]

Putin is in trouble. This is precisely the wrong moment to offer him a way out.

Keep calm and stay the course. Our strategy is working.

To those concerned about the risks posed by a losing aggressor, remember: aggression succeeding would be far more dangerous.

The last thing Europe should do is self-deter.

[TheStarKenya @TheStarKenya]

Ride-hailing company Bolt has dismissed claims circulating on social media that it plans to cease operations in Kenya next week, terming the reports false and misleading.
https://t.co/jdvpmJSJKR

[NTV Kenya @ntvkenya]

Estonia’s e-Residency programme: How Kenyans can work and operate businesses from home.

Eric Latiff speaks to Ambassador Daniel Schaer. #FixingTheNationNTV @nationfmke @ericlatiff @mariambishar @blinkypenguin

[ESTDEV 🇪🇪 #StandWithUkraine @ESTDEVestonia]

#ESTDEV and @EstonianIct had the honour to host European and East African partners in 🇪🇪 this week to strengthen long-term cooperation around Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) 🤝 🌐

The Europe–East Africa DPI Forum in Tallinn offered a practical lens into building a secure and connected digital society, bringing together #tech companies, government institutions, and development partners to strengthen strategic connections between the East African Community (EAC) and European private sector. 📈🌍

#FromThePeopleOfEstonia #DigitalPublicInfrastructure #InvestEastAfrica @schaerdaniel @GizTanzania @EABCjumuiya @jumuiya @MFAestonia

[CTA - Cleaning The Airwaves @CTA101]

A New Chapter for Estonia-Kenya Relations

At the recently concluded African Business Forum 2026 in Tallinn, Estonia, Ambassador @schaerdaniel — Estonia's Ambassador to Kenya and South Africa — shed light on the thinking behind one of Estonia's most significant diplomatic decisions of the year: the opening of a physical embassy in Nairobi, Kenya. Speaking candidly, Ambassador Schaer explained that the choice of Kenya was far from arbitrary. With Estonia's Estonian Centre for International Development (@ESTDEVestonia) office already anchored in Nairobi and a growing network of East African partners, the groundwork had been quietly laid for years. When asked why Kenya was chosen over South Africa — Estonia's number one trading partner and top export destination — the Ambassador was direct: South African business ties are already well-established, with Estonian companies largely operating independently in that market. East Africa, by contrast, is where the bridge-building work is still needed, and where Estonia sees its greatest opportunity to add value through an active diplomatic presence.

Ambassador Schaer was equally clear about what a permanent, on-the-ground embassy will change in practice. Rather than connecting with partners once a year at forums like the Africa Business Forum, the embassy will enable sustained, in-field engagement — finding the right partners, making key introductions, and lowering the barrier for Estonian businesses looking to enter the continent. "You have to be on the ground," he said, echoing a message he noted was repeated throughout the forum. He also offered a pointed piece of advice to anyone seeking to do business with Estonia: come prepared. Estonians are practical, he emphasized — all company information, down to the latest financials, is publicly available online, and prospective partners are expected to arrive with a concrete proposal. The opening of the Nairobi embassy, coinciding with 25 years of Estonia-Kenya diplomatic relations, is therefore not merely a symbolic gesture — it is a working platform designed to turn forum handshakes into real, lasting business and diplomatic partnerships across East Africa. @WeAreGCI #GoldenConnections #AfricaBusinessForum2026

@joelkarubiu @MFAestonia @astarthelight

[NTV Kenya @ntvkenya]

Fellow Kenyans, this is not AI! 😂❌

Imagine a system where taxes actually fund free healthcare and education.

.@EricLatiff caught up with Kate Mwatu, a Kenyan living and running a business in Tallinn, Estonia.

#FixingTheNationNTV @NationFmKE @blinkypenguin @MariamBishar

[Djibril Ouattara @ouatt_djibril]

Je suis actuellement à Tallinn pour l’Africa Business Forum 2026. 🇨🇮 🇪🇪
L’Estonie a transformé le numérique en service du citoyen. Une stratégie qui résonne avec notre cap en Côte d’Ivoire.

[CTA - Cleaning The Airwaves @CTA101]

At the Africa Business Forum in Tallinn today, Bolt co-founder @waldec walked us through how they cracked the African market — and the lessons are worth paying attention to. A few things that stood out:

— Competitors entered Africa accepting only credit cards. With card penetration as low as 3% in some markets, that excluded most of the population. Bolt moved early on mobile money and cash.

— Rather than staying in capital cities like most platforms, they pushed into tier 2 and tier 3 cities where demand was real but competition was thin.

— When Tanzania changed its regulations and a major competitor exited, Bolt stayed, negotiated, and turned the disruption into a growth opportunity.

— Over 1 million of their 4 million platform partners are based in Africa. This isn't a side market for them.

The broader takeaway? Market entry is less about resources and more about how well you understand the people you're building for.

@astarthelight @WeAreGCI @schaerdaniel @joelkarubiu

#AfricaBusinessForumTallin2026 #CTABrandStories #GoldenConnections #CTAGlobal #CTA101

[Djibril Ouattara @ouatt_djibril]

Échange avec @schaerdaniel, en marge de l’Africa Business Forum 2026.
L’Estonie a construit l’un des États les plus digitalisés au monde.
C’est une référence mondiale en GovTech, cybersécurité et services publics numériques.

[Ambassador Jonatan Vseviov @vseviov]

My message at the opening of the Africa Business Seminar with Côte d'Ivoire Minister @ouatt_djibril:

🇪🇪 sees Africa not only as a continent of opportunity, but as a partner in shaping the future. We want to be part of Africa’s success story — through trade, innovation and long-term cooperation.

[Daniel Erik Schaer 🇪🇪 @schaerdaniel]

We are Writing the Next Chapter in
Africa–Estonia Collaboration @ #AfricaBusinessForum2026 in Tallinn opened by Minister @ouatt_djibril and SG @vseviov
The afternoon was powered by @AunapuuAune and Gomolemo Lolo Madikgetla sharing experiences as Women Leaders in Change

[ESTDEV 🇪🇪 #StandWithUkraine @ESTDEVestonia]

#ESTDEV 🤝 @RealSmartAfrica have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to deepen collaboration on building inclusive, secure, and innovative digital societies across Africa 🌍

This partnership brings together Estonia’s globally recognised digital expertise with Smart Africa’s vision for a connected and digitally empowered continent.

Read more 👉 https://t.co/DT7yBSO5t1

#FromThePeopleOfEstonia @CEOSmartAfrica @MFAestonia @schaerdaniel @EEinEU

[Estonian MFA 🇪🇪 | 🌻 #StandWithUkraine @MFAestonia]

Happy #AfricaDay to our friends and partners across the African continent.

Estonia’s 🇪🇪 cooperation with African nations has grown remarkably in recent years, especially in the fields of digital development, education, innovation, and business, as well as through collaboration in multilateral forums.

Just last week, we opened two new honorary consulates in Gambia 🇬🇲 and Côte d'Ivoire 🇨🇮. Later this year, we will take another significant step as we open a new Embassy in Nairobi 🇰🇪, complementing our existing mission in Cairo 🇪🇬.

We look forward to deepening these partnerships and creating new opportunities together.

[Margus Tsahkna @Tsahkna]

I had a great meeting with Ghana’s Foreign Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

Ghana and Estonia are likeminded partners who stand for the same values.

I see great potential in deepening our cooperation in digitalisation and innovation.

[Daniel Erik Schaer 🇪🇪 @schaerdaniel]

Congratulations and welcome to #TeamEstonia 🇪🇪 in Africa 🌍

[Estonian MFA 🇪🇪 | 🌻 #StandWithUkraine @MFAestonia]

This week Estonia opened two new honorary consulates on the African continent – in Gambia and in Côte d’Ivoire. 🇪🇪🇬🇲🇨🇮

At both openings, DG @karelsohn stressed that honorary consuls are an extremely important source of support for the foreign service of a small country.

#Estonia currently has only one embassy on the African continent, in Cairo. Although we will open an embassy in #Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, later this year, there are still many countries in Africa where Estonia has no diplomatic representation.

This makes the contribution of honorary consuls in raising Estonia’s profile and representing our country invaluable.

[Kaja Kallas @kajakallas]

Of all the horrors inflicted by Russia’s war, the abduction of Ukrainian children is one of its worst.

Stealing children is a calculated Russian attack on Ukraine’s future.

Bringing them home is a priority.
We support this with funding, aid and sanctions.

The EU today imposed new sanctions on individuals and entities in Russia for the systematic ‌unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children.

My press remarks ahead of the Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children with @andrii_sybiha, @AnitaAnandMP and @MartaKosEU ↓

[EUvsDisinfo @EUvsDisinfo]

The EU-sanctioned African Initiative presents itself as a news agency.

Investigations show it is, in fact, a structured Russian FIMI operation, created from former Wagner-linked assets and aligned with Russian state interests, and a central vehicle for Russia’s information influence in Africa.

The Kremlin’s expansionist ambitions extend far beyond its neighbors, and it is crucial to recognize their tactics.

[Estonian MFA 🇪🇪 | 🌻 #StandWithUkraine @MFAestonia]

We are excited to announce that, following their appointment by the President, Estonia’s new Ambassadors to our forthcoming embassies in Brazil 🇧🇷 and Kenya 🇰🇪 will be Ambassador @moonika_kase and Ambassador @schaerdaniel.

Estonia 🇪🇪 has been steadily strengthening its ties with both regions in recent years, particularly in business and digital cooperation. The establishment of these new embassies will help elevate these relationships even further.

We wish both Ambassadors the very best as they begin their important new roles.

[Daniel Erik Schaer 🇪🇪 @schaerdaniel]

Congratulations to Joshua Weru! Awesome!

[NFL Africa @NFLAfrica]

A dream come true for Joshua Weru 🇰🇪

Coming from a rugby background, he will join fellow IPP alum, Uar Bernard 🇳🇬 on the @Eagles, and will currently be the lone Kenyan in the NFL, paving the way for others 🙏

#FlyEaglesFly