The hectic election campaign, which has been going on for several weeks, did not end at all with Election Day - it has turned into a direction for discussions about the future, the near and far future.
As part of our #ReportThursday series, we present documents, reports and guides on architecture, cities and local government that are certainly worth publicizing and promoting. This week we look at the report "10/10. 10 Challenges for the 10th Parliamentary Term from a Business Perspective," produced by the Inisght Policy team.
The report presented today goes beyond the classic sequence of our series and our portal - architecture and urban planning, however, do not remain autonomous spheres, but are directly connected to all external factors. What are the most important challenges in the sphere of post-election transition today?
The report compiled by a team consisting of: Hanna Cichy, Maciej Czapluk, Mateusz Fornowski, Karol Tokarczyk and Robert Tomaszewski. The document was created in cooperation with Katarzyna Debska.
The report is available on the Polityka Insight website.
The report is available on the Polityka Insight website
© Polityka Insight
challenges of today
The experts mapped the ten most important challenges facing Poland in the context of new power and maintaining the process of economic development. Although the document emphasizes the business perspective, it is hard not to relate them to the sensitive social topics highlighted in the election campaign. Which is among the denominational benchmarks that must be addressed in the discussion.
First and foremost, legislation, the report's authors and contributors point out the phenomenon of so-called legal obstruction, i.e. the massive growth of new legislation, the conflict over the composition of the Constitutional Court, and the need to meet milestones.
Equally important is the unlocking of funds from the National Reconstruction Program. These funds amount to as much as 158 billion zlotys, which can also be used for urban transformation, debetonation, revitalization or a program to build rental housing. Improving relations with the European Union will be well received by business, for as the report indicates - 93% of boards of directors of large companies review rule of law assessments. Strengthening relations may also serve to better influence EU legislation.
It will be important for the newly formed government and the 10th Sejm to improve the investment climate. Investment in Poland was almost 6 percentage points lower than the EU average. Poland's capital market is not adequately developed, so companies are not issuing stocks and bonds for investment (an offshoot of the popularity of "concrete gold," i.e., buying apartments for investment). Importantly, the lack of public investment is just as noted, and the shortcomings in this matter affect the private sector.
Transportation has been framed from a primarily commercial perspective - the long-standing neglect of freight investment shows the need to make up for years of neglect. First and foremost in strengthening the development of intermodal infrastructure, enhanced by the development of railroads, seaports and airports. The authors of the report pointed out that electrification is too slow.
The topics covered include law, investment, transport, education, energy, green transformation and digitization
photo by Wiktor Bochenek
A perceived problem will also be the lack of jobs to hand. In Poland, people of working age take jobs just below the EU average. The situation is worse for citizens 50+ - here too little activation is evident. Poland is not ready to absorb new immigrants, even though this is necessary to maintain economic development.
Education remains a considerable challenge - there isa shortage of specialists in new technologies, and the gap with hiring teachers is getting bigger. The Polish Teachers' Union points to a figure of 40000 full-time teachers. It is worth thinking about forms of educational activation - only 7.6% of adults are further educated - this is below the EU average. The economy will require the education of experts, which we must think about today.
The authors of the report also point to health issues. In this area, there is a need, above all, to think about management reform and accelerate digitization. The shortage of specialist physicians, including child psychiatrists, will remain a significant problem for some time to come, as will the failure to provide medical security in case of conflicts and wars. Lifestyle is also negatively affected, with 52% of Polish women and men not playing any sports.
Energy and the green economy are as many as two problems that will affect our economy. The lack of a decarbonization plan - or rather, the residual nature of the current one - remains a considerable problem. The too slow development of renewable energy sources is also apparent. For business, the prospect of energy pricing is difficult. In Poland, a high carbon footprint will hit business - regardless of what climate denialists think. It is worth considering the process of strengthening the development of recycling and reducing emissions.
The last issue is digitization - it is progressing far too slowly. We should already invest more in high-speed Internet access, more e-services and additional money for the digital economy.
challenges for today
All of the challenges mentioned in the report translate into the possibility of losing the competitiveness of the Polish economy, built up over thirty years, which today, more than ever, should be the flywheel for solving social problems - urban adaptation to climate change, energy transition or sustainable development.
The report is available on the Politics Insight website.
