Ministerstwo Gospodarki > English > News

– The current government’s plans are aimed not as much at improving Poland’ position in competitiveness rankings, but at facilitating doing business in our country – said Adam Szejnfeld, economy deputy minister during a press conference at which the World Bank’s 5th ”Doing Business 2008” Report was presented. The event was held on 3 July in Warsaw.

Adam Szejnfeld pointed out three areas of the government’s activity aiming to boost entrepreneurship in Poland. – The work of the government focuses mostly on reducing the red tape, introducing easier solutions for entrepreneurs and changing the law-making system – he stressed.

The deputy head of the Ministry of Economy reminded that Poland had joined the EU’s program known as Better regulation. Its assumptions include reducing administrative burdens in member states by 20–25% before 2012. – We plan to achieve this goal as soon as in 2010 – noted the deputy minister. – We hope that those actions will not only generate profits for businesspeople, but will also add approximately 1.9% to the GDP growth – he added.

Adam Szejnfeld also noted that business activity in Poland will be facilitated by 21 legal acts worked out by the Ministry of Economy as part of the “Entrepreneurship Package”. – Five of them heave already been passed by the Sejm and the Senate, and some have already been signed by the President – he underscored.

The secretary of state at the Ministry of Economy has devoted much attention to the new Public-Private Partnership Act (PPP).– It is one of the elements embodying the idea of the state’s trust to its citizens – he said. – Thanks to this project the administration will be more efficient in performing public tasks with the participation of private partners – he added. According to minister Szejnfeld, the new PPP Act is likely to promote this form of cooperation in Poland.

The deputy economy minister has also noted that it is necessary to come up with a new law-making system. – If we fail to introduce material changes in this respect within 2-4 years, the problems that entrepreneurs face today we reoccur – he stressed.

Strong and weak points of the Polish law-making system were presented during the conference, just as were the conclusions and recommendations for those responsible for preparing new regulations. In the opinion of the report’s authors, in order to facilitate the environment in which entrepreneurs function in our country, it is important, inter alia, to make the setting-up and the liquidating of own businesses easier, to reduce bureaucracy, to improve flexibility of the labor market and to simplify the tax system. – Changes in those fields could move Poland from place 74 at which it is currently ranked in the “Doing Business” Report, to spot 36. – noted Leszek Kąsek, a World Bank economist.

***

Along deputy economy minister Adam Szejnfeld, the meeting participants included among others: Oscar de Bruyn World Bank’s Poland representative, Paweł Samecki member of th ePolish National Bank management board, and Jarosław Bełdowski chairman of the FOR foundation. The “Doing Business 2008” Report prepared by the World Bank is the 5th of annual studies analyzing economic regulation systems that either enhance or hinder entrepreneurship. It contains indicators allowing to benchmark economic law and property protection regulations in 178 countries worldwide, which regulations pertain, inter alia, to: hiring and dismissing personnel, access to loans, protection of investors, tax payments, international trade. It needs to be stressed that the current data relates to the period between July 2006 and June 2007. Presentation of the report’s English language version took place in December last year. The Polish version was revealed yesterday.