Both the Polish administration and civil society strongly support the EU Baltic Sea Strategy, which is under preparation by the EU Commission. At the Baltic Sea Economic Congress in Warsaw 23 September, speakers and participants underlined the need for further cooperation to realize the Region’s full potential. As one of the largest states in the Region, Poland’s involvement is vital for an effective strategy.
Together with Baltic Development Forum, the Office of the Committee for European Integration (UKIE) and the think tank demosEUROPA arranged a one day seminar on the economic aspects of the EU Baltic Sea Strategy, which is currently under preparation by the EU Commission. A first draft of the Strategy is to be issued by the end of this year.
Representatives of the administrations of nearly all EU-member states in the region as well as other important actors were gathered to discuss the strategy’s opportunities and challenges regarding the region’s Internal Market, entrepreneurship and innovation in three interactive workshops. These topics are all crucial aspects in order to increase the Baltic Sea Region’s global competitiveness, which was identified as the common objective of all parties involved in the development of the strategy. Particularly the issue of deregulation is important for the Polish side.
Among the participants and speakers were Marcin Korolec, Undersecretary of State, Ministry of the Economy, Poland; Krzysztof Rybinski, former Deputy President of the Polish National Bank; Pawel Swieboda, Director of demosEUROPA; Ann-Kerstin Myleus, DG Regio EU Commission; and Hans Brask, Director of BDF.
After a short introduction on the political and economic framework conditions, the seminar focused on the aspects of the Internal Market, entrepreneurship and innovation in three interactive workshops. From the Polish side economic prosperity and development – in particular issues relating to Better Regulation – were identified as key priorities which can be realized through the Strategy.
A series of analytical papers with focus on the EU Baltic Sea Strategy has been prepared by UKIE and is available on the UKIE homepage.
To read/download the report from the EU Baltic Sea Strategy Seminar in Warsaw, follow this link.