Polska transformacja na tle doświadczeń Europy Środkowej i Wschodniej

Abstract

In the paper, Polish transformational experiences of the last 25 years have been compared with the course of changes in other states of the region. In the case of the change of GDP per capita the Polish outcome, apart from the Slovenian one, is the best in the region. The same fact refers to the evolution of the historical Human Development Index, in which case Poland has a leading position together with other states of the Visegrad Group. How- ever, what distinguishes Poland from them is a relatively high inequality rate, which is still lower than in the Baltic states. In general, Poland belongs to countries, which adopted a relatively sustainable transformation model, placed between Baltic states’ radicalism and Slovenia’s gradualism. Their characteristic feature (shared also with Slovenia) is main- taining the essential role of relatively complex industry, which is partially possible due to a rapid inflow of crucial direct investments. Altogether, despite significant problems, such as low capital expenditure on technology, persistently low wages or relatively high inequality rate, Poland after 1989 stands out positively from the region.