During the event, the economic situation in Poland, the opportunities for economic and commercial cooperation with the Polish regions and the financial instruments to invest in the country were discussed. To discuss these issues, the President of the Assembly of the Świętokrzyskie Region, Andrzej Bętkowski spoke; the director of the Department of Investments and Development of the Assembly of the Świętokrzyskie region, Jacek Sułek; the vice president of the Assembly of the Dolnośląskie region, Grzegorz Macko; the deputy director of the Department of Economics of the Assembly of the Dolnośląskie region, Tomasz Krzeszowiec; and Adam Styś, representative of Santander Bank Polska.
Investment opportunities
The CEO of International CEOE, Narciso Casado, highlighted the positive economic evolution in Poland and stressed the importance of public-private partnerships for the successful development of bilateral relations. In this regard, he mentioned that Poland represents the largest economy in the region, ranking as the most attractive destination for foreign investment in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. “This is reinforced because it is and will continue to be the main recipient of community funds, which will entail a series of improvement and investment programs in sectors such as transport infrastructure (roads and rail), energy, waste management or waste treatment. waters, ”he said. To carry out these projects, Casado suggested a greater participation of the private sector and the promotion of public-private partnerships, since they represent an open window to the development of joint projects.
Likewise, the CEO of International CEOE stressed that the process of modernization of infrastructure, the plans of the Polish government in the development of national roads, the need to modernize the railway network, adaptations in energy generation from renewable sources, and The development of new technologies opens up new ways of bilateral collaboration. In addition, he assured that the regulatory changes produced in the field of foreign investment in Poland, are an incentive for economic growth and attractive for companies. Casado explained that the presence of important companies in various sectors offers possibilities for cooperation in areas such as ICT, chemical and pharmaceutical, renewable energy, tourism or construction, among others.
The Vice President of the Council of the Polish-Spanish Chamber of Commerce, Mirosław Węglarczyk, explained that there are already 100 companies from both countries associated with the Chamber and that they are specialized in various sectors such as ICTs, agribusiness or tourism. With regard to the work of the Chamber, its mission is to intensify collaboration with the Spanish and Polish regions; encourage the signing of cooperation agreements between regions; encourage foreign companies to invest in these areas; organize trade missions for companies from certain regions to Poland and Spain; and follow up later to help maintain and develop business relationships.
Bilateral relations
The Deputy Director General of EU Trade Policy of the Secretary of State for Trade, Rocío Frutos, stressed that Poland is one of the main growth engines of the European Union. As regards bilateral relations, there is a commercial exchange of approximately 11,000 million euros, with Spain being the 12th largest trading partner of Poland in 2019, and our 11th customer. Frutos said that relations between the two countries are fairly balanced and added that "between 2014 and 2018, bilateral trade increased by 40%."
