Poland is currently experiencing one of its most prosperous times in history. After years of communist rule and suppression, Poland has established itself as one of the great modern success stories of Europe. Its economic growth, position in central Europe and attractive labour costs has seen it become an attractive location for many new businesses.
While many countries struggled during the recession of 2008-2009, Poland’s GDP grew by over 20% during 2008-2013. Much of its improved prosperity was down to joining the EU in 2004 where administrative reform and funding has been put to good use. The country has already been awarded £56bn in development funds with a further £60bn planned for Warsaw in the EU’s 2014-2020 budget.
Much of the money has gone towards developing Poland’s infrastructure with the construction of much needed autobahns (5 times longer than they were in 2014), re-development of its train stations and setting up broadband across the country. The changes have made it much easier to export goods across Europe and have helped forge close ties with Germany, Europe’s largest economy.
A significant part of Germany’s export strategy relies on Poland for low-cost, high quality manufacturing that’s proven to be very competitive in terms of cost with much of East Asia; in turn Poland continues to receive further investment and a market for its goods.
Like India, Poland also competes in the outsourcing of services. Dell has moved their main European factory from Limerick, Ireland, to Lodz, Poland and a number of companies are following suit. Made possible by the countries well-educated workforce, one of the few beneficial legacies from its former communist rule.
Poland has one of the highest literacy rates in the world and the former Soviet Union’s engineering based education system has provided a solid foundation for IT outsourcing and software development. The country continues to invest heavily in education, promotes the learning of English and has built a number of new Universities across the country.
Exchange programs with other European countries are common and the continual development of its education system is paving the way for small, innovative technology companies that are starting to form part of the government’s plans for a high-tech future.
It would be remiss to say that everything is perfect. Unemployment is still high and approximately 2 million Poles have emigrated to the UK since its accession. However in doing so it has broadened horizons, promoted interaction with UK businesses and more importantly has helped changed the public perception of Poland as a victim of historic atrocities. The country is no longer weighed down by its troubled past, but is emerging buoyant, optimistic and rightly considered as a place for business expansion and entrepreneurship.
The rise of Poland as a one of the best European countries to open a business has been a remarkable story over the last decade, leading World Bank economist Marcin Piatkowski to conclude that:
“Poland has just had probably the best 20 years in more than one thousand years of its history.”
With a population of 38 million, a well-educated work-force, low-labour costs and attractive tax rates, Poland is now being thought of for all the right reasons. Let’s hope it continues.
This post was written by Open A European Company.com We offer our clients a number services including company formation, bookkeeping, virtual offices, accounting, company incorporation and immigration advice.