„The Brighter Side of Europe” / Piotr Kaczyński

The Polish green island successfully survived the difficult moments of 2009.
Yet in order to catch up fully Poles need to continue to invest. Some studies
have already predicted that due to major investments in education, Poles
have a strong chance to become level economically with Western European
societies within a couple of decades. Polish students already achieve much
better results than the European average. Even if the quality of university
teaching has been average in recent years, two factors point to an upcoming
major change. First, the massive influx of new university graduates (raising
the level of tertiary education among Poles from 7 percent to 15 percent
within 10 years with about 50 percent of young Poles attending university)
came to an end as the baby boomers from the early 1980s graduated. Now
the universities have to compete for students and are forced to improve the
quality of teaching they offer. Secondly, government policy is changing, favouring
not only teaching, but also spending more resources on research
projects. As a consequence one should expect a radical increase in the quality
of Polish universities in the years to come.
Poland continues to invest in its people. It was the first country in Europe
to create a state ministry responsible for public education – back in 1773.
Today there are more than 400 higher education centres such as universities
and polytechnics, both public and private. The total number of university
students is about 2 million.
The new sources of economic growth are to be generated mainly from research
and development and from services. Those segments of the economy
are expanding while manufacturing rises more slowly. In fact, within a few
years, Poland has become a major centre for business-process outsourcing.
Other segments of the economy driving growth forward include the
aerospace and automotive industries, house appliances, yacht building and
industrial manufacturing. Polish organic agriculture is also fast-developing,
as is health-services tourism.
Some say the sky is the limit. This is also what some companies in Poland
seem to think. The largest oil refiner has established a strong position in the
region and many other companies in the field are looking for new business
opportunities worldwide. Many Poles dream of becoming a new Qatar; apparently
there are large deposits of shale gas all around the country. If this
information is confirmed, Poland could within a decade transform from
a gas importer into a gas-exporting nation. This would be a reversal of history:
It was in Poland in the mid-19th century that the first oil refinery was created.
Poland has also become one of the most attractive markets for foreign direct
investments. Throughout the 2000s more than 100 billion Euros have been
invested. The privatisation process has been ongoing since 1989. Though
the state still controls parts of important companies, large percentages
of their shares have been privatised. In 2010 alone the government sold
shares in companies valued at a total of more than 6 billion Euros.
Press image of Warsaw
Stock Exchange
Press image of Solaris
7
None of the Polish companies have yet made any major international breakthrough;
the quest for the Polish Nokia-type company continues. Some firms
have tried to “go global,” but so far with limited success. The next in line
are few. Apart from the oil and gas producers, there is KGHM. Already
a major company – it is the second-largest manufacturer of silver in the
world and among the leading copper producers – in the second decade
of the 2000s its strategy is to expand and consolidate. The Warsaw Stock
Exchange also has large ambitions to become the central stock exchange
for all of Central Eastern Europe, challenging the other regional contenders
in Prague, Budapest and Vienna. There are also many other companies
with very strong regional position in their segments such as Solaris (buses),
Reserved (retail), Nowy Styl (furniture) or Coffee Heaven (coffee shops
chain).
If no Polish company is yet globally known, the best-known Polish product
is vodka. Its export is booming despite the crisis (or maybe thanks to it)
and Polish vodka brands like Belvedere, Wyborowa or Żubrówka are among
the most recognisable. The fame of Polish vodka entered Hollywood when
actor Bruce Willis invested in a vodka company.
Still, the single most important reason why the green island of Poland continues
to develop is the fact that Poles are hungry to grow. During more
than 20 years of continuous change, the only constant element of the Polish
landscape was “change” itself. Every eight years or so society becomes
too tired to run at the same speed and needs a break. But these periods
of rest are short and once they end society demands to run again without
delay. There were two periods in which this pattern of constant change
had to be reduced. First in 1996-7 there was a certain relaxation among
the general public. After the hardships of the first transformation years the
Poles needed a break. But once this break was over they embraced a change
of government in 1997 and a new wave of structural reforms. The second
break came in 2006-7, when society tired of the witch-hunt performed
by the government and changed it. The new government of Donald Tusk,
taking advantage of sound performance of the Polish economy, provided
the break: reforms were slowed down and social peace was reclaimed. Still,
opinion polls in recent months suggest society is once again ready to take
another leap forward.
Poland might have been the only country to grow in 2009. This unique
situation most likely will not repeat itself in the coming years. Still, the
Polish green island’s uniqueness lies in its society’s ability and willingness
to embrace change. The Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU can only
hope that other European nations will follow suit in accepting ideas aimed
at strengthening the European economy’s increased competitiveness.
40 | Tiger Green Island
| 41