Effective and creative
An increasing number of Polish companies pick a fight for their place on global markets. Once a decision is made, entrepreneurs need to compete with businesses that already developed experience in the area. If you want to conquer a new market, you need to change the existing order – shake the world in which other players feel comfortable… or create your own world. It is a goal that justifies special means. Polish entrepreneurs know exactly that innovation can be their ‘secret weapon’.
We would like to support our entrepreneurs in the implementation of their plans. The Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy, which I am responsible for, encourages entrepreneurs to benefit from opportunities created by EU funds. Effects of the approach can already be seen. Since 2014 only, the EU support helped to develop nearly 8 thousand product, process and non-technological innovations.
The development of innovation is our goal defined in the Strategy for Responsible Development. In our Strategy, we try to convince everyone that money spent on innovation is more investment than cost. Investment not only in a product or a company, but more broadly, in Polish economy which becomes more competitive.
Innovation is not only generated in laboratories or R&D centres, which are typically associated with costly advanced technologies, it also includes solutions that we can apply in everyday life, such as green office or solar powered bus shelters. Moreover, it concerns social changes, e.g. innovations improving the quality of life for senior citizens and people with disabilities. Such ideas are one of the pillars of the governmental programme Accessibility Plus.
The second album of the series on ‘Poland’s innovations: stepping into the future’ shows 50 innovative products and services developed with the support of EU funds. The funding is not the only common feature for those projects, another one is the exceptional creativity of parties implementing them.
All the projects deserve to be admired. I hope that they inspire you to create and implement further innovative ideas.
Małgorzata Jarosińska-Jedynak
the Minister of Development Funds and Regional Policy