COVID-19 has hit the Polish society and its economy hard, even if to a lesser extent than other European countries. Employment has declined and public debt has increased abruptly, which will make it more challenging to solve long-term issues, such as the low productivity of some workers, weak environmental outcomes and rising ageing costs. Ensuring longer working lives in good health will be key to secure the pension system’s sustainability. To boost the recovery and sustain the pre-crisis growth in living standards, Poland needs to invest in greener infrastructure, additional healthcare capacity and better skills. Easing the reallocation of firms and workers would facilitate shifts in the economic structure induced by the current crisis and raise productivity. Finally boosting the capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to innovate would help them to export more and adapt to a rapidly changing international environment.

SPECIAL FEATURE: BOOSTING SMEs’ INTERNATIONALISATION