The conference was organised by the PAIiIZ, together with the Central Poland Chamber of Commerce in Łódź and the African Institute, with the participation of John Godson, member of the Polish parliament, Sławomir Majman, president of the PAIiIZ, Witold Gerlicz, president of the Central Poland Chamber of Commerce in Łódź, Janusz Michaluk, director of the Polish African Partnership Congress and Łukasz Dominiak, director general of the National Poultry Council.

During the conference the participants addressed the GoAfrica programme and the Polish-African Partnership Congress POLANDAFRICA 2013 organised within the programme.

From left: Łukasz Dominiak, director general of the National Poultry Council, Witold Gerlicz, president of the Central Poland Chamber of Commerce in Łódź, John Godson, member of the Polish parliament, Janusz Michaluk, director of the Polish African Partnership Congress and Sławomir Majman, president of the PAIiIZ.

President Sławomir Majman said that African markets are attractive for Polish businessmen, who should know what the situation is like outside of Europe and use the opportunities to export their products to far away countries. Six of the world’s ten fastest growing economies are in sub-Saharan Africa, he added. President Majman also said that  Poland was a little bit “too late” with the expansion in African market, that is why the aim of the GoAfrica programme is to promote the African continent among Polish businessmen.

John Godson, member of the Polish parliament, remarked that Africa has an enormous economic and cultural potential. He also underlined the importance of political support for business and appreciated the engagement of the Polish government in that matter, like for example the recent visit of Prime Minister Donald Tusk to Nigeria.

Witold Gerlicz, president of the Central Poland Chamber of Commerce in Łódź, noticed that African market is neglected by Poland and he announced the Polish-African Partnership Congress POLANDAFRICA 2013, which will be held between 26th and 27th November 2013 in the Conferences and Exhibition Centre MTŁ in Łódź.

It will be the first Polish-African Partnership Congress and its aim is to develop relations between Poland and Africa, especially as far as the cooperation between the countries from the GO AFRICA programme is concerned, that is Nigeria, Angola, Kenya, Algeria, Mozambique and Republic of South Africa. The Congress is a joint initiative between the Central Poland Chamber of Commerce in Łódź, the African Institute and the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency organized under the patronage of the Parliamentary team on Africa.

Signature of the memorandum of cooperation between the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency and the Central Poland Chamber of Commerce in Łódź

During the Congress plenary sessions with the participation of the representatives of the Polish government and the African authorities will take place, as well as matchmaking and B2B meetings in the following thematic sessions:

• Geoengineering, mining industry, energy, ecology
• Defense industry
• Investment, infrastructure and construction
• IT and its adaptation to new economy
• Agriculture and food industry
• Healthcare and pharmaceutical industry
• Schooling and education

Participation in the Congress is free of charge. More information about the event and the registration is available on the following website: www.polandafrica.pl

During the conference a memorandum of cooperation was signed between the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency and the Central Poland Chamber of Commerce in Łódź. (PAIiIZ)

On July 23rd the Council of Ministers issued a regulation, submitted by the Minister of Economy, amending the regulations on the following special economic zones: kamiennogórska, katowicka, kostrzyńsko-słubicka, krakowska, legnicka, tarnobrzeska, łódzka, mielecka, pomorska, słupska, starachwicka, suwalska, tarnobrzeska, wałbrzyska, warmińsko-mazurska.

Thanks to the extension of the SEZ operation time by 6 years the zones will still be a motivation for investment and they will contribute to the growing influx of new projects and investors. The entrepreneurs will gain confidence that the instrument of special economic zones will be preserved. Extension of the operation of the zones is especially important for investors that are realizing projects in sectors with a low rate of return, such as the automotive industry, which would not locate factories in Poland if the zones were to exist only until 2020.

It is estimated that the projects that are being realised in the zones will contribute to the creation of new jobs and will have a positive effect on the competitiveness of Polish economy. Extension of the period is not in contradiction with the European Union rules of state aid.

These rules concern the next programming period and are placed in national provisions governing the operation of SEZ. As a result, entrepreneurs who will receive a permission to operate in SEZ after January 1st 2014, shall be subject to new rules. The regulation will enter in force 14 days after the publication in the Journal of Laws. (KPRM)

The conference was organised due to the ongoing call for petitions for financial support in the frame of Measure 6.1  “Passport to export”, Operational Programme - Innovative Economy.

The following persons shared their knowledge with the conference participants: Director Andrzej Łosiewicz (Innovation Support Department) from the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development, Leszek Kołodziejczyk z from the Office of Eastern Poland in the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency and Michał Gorzelak (Private Sector Liaison Officer to the World Bank) from the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency.

The participants had the opportunity to gain detailed information and find out about the beneficiary requirements that have to be met in the frame of Measure 6.1  “Passport to export”, in order to participate in the promotion programmes within the Operational Programme - Innovative Economy and Promotion Programme of Eastern Poland. The project was financed from European Union sources within European Regional Development Fund in the frame of Technical Assistance Operational Programme. (PAIiIZ)

Lublin is a city with a wide educational offer for young IT engineers, which is also competitive in terms of the price compared to other Polish cities, and so it has a big potential for the development of Sii Service Center.

Sii hires more than 1200 engineers and is the top IT & engineering services provider in Poland. The company supports clients in terms of counseling, analysis and tests, software development, infrastructure management, system maintenance and integration, and industrial engineering. Sii specialists realize projects for top companies from different sectors, such as banking and finance, securities, telecommunication, Hi-Tech, energy or industry.

Sii took the 15th place on the Europe’s 500  list of the Top Growth Companies in Europe and is one of the two Polish companies on the list. The study is conducted periodically under the patronage of the European Parliament. (Municipal Office in Lublin)

Vidacolor produces ceramic tiles based on Italian technologies and using Italian devices, from Polish materials and under the guidance of Polish specialists.

The investor will produce glazes and frits and create a new research and development center for the ceramic industry (tiles production technology).

In addition, the investor will collaborate with companies from the ceramic industry, as far as developing coloring technologies, preparing colorants and glazes, as well as storing semi-finished products from ceramic industry is concerned.

The company is planning to invest around PLN 1 million by the end of 2014 and hire at least 6 new employees. The new investment shall be completed until the end of March 2015. (SEZ "Starachowice")

• Exchange rates (as of 26.07.2013):

	Buy	Sell
USD	3.1732	3.2374
EUR	4.1964	4.2812

Source: www.nbp.pl

82^nd Izmir International Fair 2013 will take place between 29th August and 2nd September. The following industries will be presented this year: furniture, construction, decoration products, interior design, home appliances, construction machines, chemicals and petrochemicals, motorcycle accessories, agricultural machinery, electrical devices, consumer electronics, medical, rehabilitation and sport equipment, yachts, cosmetics, processed food products, textiles, services, finance, publishing houses.

The companies can apply for financial aid to participate in the project. The value of financial aid cannot exceed 75% of general costs under Submeasure 6.5.2 OP. The deadline for submitting applications is the 29th July 2013.
For more information please contact Agnieszka Faust, e-mail: agnieszka.faust@paiz.gov.pl, tel.: +48 22 334 99 88.
The project is organised in the frame of the „Promotion of the Polish economy in Turkey” programme (sub-measure 6.5.1 of the Operational Programme Innovative Economy).

The next event within the „Promotion of the Polish economy in Turkey” programme is WORLDFOOD - 21st International Food Products & Processing Technologies Exhibition, which will take place between 5th and 8th September in Istanbul.

The fair is aimed at food and agriculture industry and food processing technologies industry. A mission for Polish entrepreneurs from the food industry  is also organized. The companies can apply for financial aid to take part in the fair and in the economic mission. The value of financial support to participate in the promotion programme cannot exceed 75% of general costs under Submeasure 6.5.2 OP. The deadline for submitting applications is the 5th August 2013.

For more information please contact Agnieszka Faust, e-mail: agnieszka.faust@paiz.gov.pl, tel.: +48 22 334 99 88.

The project is organised in the framework of the system project "Promotion of the Polish economy on the international market" (sub-measure 6.5.1 of the Operational Programme Innovative Economy). (PAIiIZ)

The application is aimed at all the tourism lovers, who don’t like monotony and prefer to spend their  free time in a unique and active way.

With the app’s help it is easier to visit five voivodships of Eastern Poland: warmińsko- mazurskie, podlaskie, lubelskie, podkarpackie and świętokrzyskie.

The application is also a kind of an invitation to have fun together and embark on a journey through the Eastern Poland Development Program projects and other interesting places - including monuments, beautiful corners, etc.

It also contains information about accommodation and restaurants, essential for every tourist. To make sightseeing even more pleasant, users are able to collect points for logging in at locations they are visiting, and exchange them for gifts, such as Eastern Poland gadgets.

The campaign will last until 10^th December 2013.

The application can be downloaded for free to your mobile device using the following link:

http://www.polskawschodnia.gov.pl/dzialaniapromocyjne/Strony/2013_05_13_aplikacja_mobilna.aspx
(www.polskawschodnia.gov.pl)