Poland

Economic indicators

Poland's economy developed rapidly in the mid 1990s, but slowed down considerably in 2001-2002, prior to recovering somewhat before it joined the European Union in May 2004. GDP growth reached 5.3% in 2004 but dropped again to 3.4% in 2005 because of the decline in domestic spending and exports, and should be 5% in 2006. The economy is developing rapidly but this has incited the government to put off fiscal reforms. The IMF foresees GDP growth of 4.5% in 2007. Inflation is forecast to rise progressively from an estimated rate of 0.9% in 2006 to a rate of 2.3% in 2007. The rate of unemployment is too high: about 19%. The current account deficit seems to be getting worse but only 2.6% of GDP in 2008. The contribution of foreign investment is substantial, especially in the sector of subcontracting.

Main sectors of industry

Agriculture employs more than 25% of the active population and contributes about 5% to GDP. Poland is generally self sufficient as regards food; the main crops are rye, potatoes, beetroot, wheat and dairy products. Pigs and sheep are the main livestock. Poland is relatively rich in natural resources; the main ores produced are coal, sulphur, copper, lead and zinc. The manufacturing industry is the mainspring of the economy, contributing about 30% to GDP; the tertiary sector represents about 65%. The country's main industrial sectors are machine manufacturing, telecommunications, environment, transport, construction, industrial food preparation and information technology.

Source: World Bank - World Development Indicators - last available data.

Sources of economic information

Ministries

Ministry of FinanceMinistry of Foreign AffairsMinistry of the Treasury

Statistical Office

Polish Office of Statistics

Central Bank

Polish Central Bank

Stock Exchange

Warsaw Stock Exchange

Online newspapers

The Warsaw Voice
Zycie Warszawy
Economist.com
Interfax
Warsaw Business Journal

Search Engines

Wirtualna Polska
Sharelook.pl
Wroclaw

Economic portals

Business in Poland information website
Onet

Political outline

Executive Power

The President is the head of State. He is elected by universal suffrage for a five year term. The Prime Minister is the head of the government. He is appointed by the President, but this appointment must be confirmed by the lower house of Parliament (as a general rule, he is the leader of the majority party or coalition), for a four year term of office. The Prime Minister holds the executive power, which includes the enforcement of the law and the management of the country's current affairs. The Council of Ministers is proposed by the Prime Minister and approved by the lower house before being appointed by the President.

Legislative Power

The legislative power in Poland is bi-cameral. Parliament is composed of: the Senate (upper house), which has 100 seats and whose members are elected by a majority vote on a provincial basis, for a four year term of office; and the Sejm (lower house) which has 460 seats and whose members are elected by a complex system of proportional representation, for a four year term of office. The President has the right to veto legislation passed by Parliament, but the latter can supplant him by a majority of two thirds of the Sejm.

Main political parties

Poland has a multi-party system and is generally governed by a coalition government. The country's main political parties are:
- The SLD (Democratic Left Alliance), a successor of the communist party, recast as a social democratic party;
- The PO (Civic Platform), a liberal conservative party;
- The PD (Democratic Party), a liberal social party;
- The UP (Labour Union), a social democratic party rooted in the anti-communist opposition;
- The PiS (Law and Justice), a right wing group based on a platform of law and order;
- The LPR (Polish Family League), an extreme right nationalist and Roman Catholic party (anti EU);
- The PSL (Polish Peasant Party), a group situated center left, representing the farming community;
- The SRP (Self defense of the Polish Republic), a left wing party with the Polish unions.

Current political leaders

President : Lech KACZYNSKI (since December 2005) - PiS
Prime Minister: Jaroslaw KACZYNSKI (since July 2006) - PiS, head of a coalition government with the SRP and the LPR.

Next election dates

Presidential elections: October 2010
Senate : September 2009
Sejm : September 2009

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