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Capital Warsaw
52°13? N 21°02? E Largest city Warsaw Official language(s) Polish[2]
966
10th century
November 11, 1918 Area
• Total
• Water (%)
38,635,144 (32nd)
38,230,080
123.5/km˛ (64th)
{{{population_densitymi˛}}}/mi˛ 2005 estimate
$512.9 billion (23rd)
$13,275 (51st) 0.858 (36th) – high Currency Time zone
• Summer (DST) CET (UTC+1)
CEST (UTC+2) Internet TLD .pl (also .eu as part of the European Union) Calling code +48 |
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Poland Information
For a more detailed treatment of this topic, see the subarticles Politics of Poland, Foreign relations of Poland and Military of Poland.
Poland is a democratic republic. Its current constitution dates from 1997. The government structure centres on the Council of Ministers, led by a prime minister. The president appoints the cabinet according to the proposals of the prime minister, typically from the majority coalition in the bicameral legislature's lower house (the Sejm). The president, elected by popular vote every five years, serves as the head of state. The current president is Lech Kaczy?ski.
Polish voters elect a two house parliament, consisting of a 460 member lower house Sejm and a 100 member Senate (Senat). The Sejm is elected under a proportional representation electoral system using the d'Hondt method similar to that used in many parliamentary political systems. The Senate, on the other hand, is elected under a rare plurality bloc voting method where several candidates with the highest support are elected from each electorate. With the exception of ethnic minority parties, only candidates of political parties receiving at least 5% of the total national vote can enter the Sejm. When sitting in joint session, members of the Sejm and Senate form the National Assembly, (Polish Zgromadzenie Narodowe). The National Assembly is formed on three occasions: Taking the oath of office by a new president, bringing an indictment against the President of the Republic to the Tribunal of State, and declaration of a President's permanent incapacity to exercise their duties due to the state of their health. Only the first kind has occurred to date.
The judicial branch plays a minor role in decision-making. Its major institutions include the Supreme Court (S?d Najwy?szy), the Supreme Administrative Court (Naczelny S?d Administracyjny) (judges appointed by the president of the republic on the recommendation of the National Council of the Judiciary for an indefinite period), the Constitutional Tribunal (Trybuna? Konstytucyjny) (judges chosen by the Sejm for nine-year terms) and the Tribunal of State (Trybuna? Stanu) (judges chosen by the Sejm for the current term of office of the Sejm, except for the position of chairperson which is held by the First President of the Supreme Court). The Sejm (on approval of the Polish Senate) appoints the Ombudsman or the Commissioner for Civil Rights Protection (Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich) for a five-year term. The Ombudsman has the duty of guarding the observance and implementation of the rights and liberties of the human being and of the citizen, the law and principles of community life and social justice.
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For more details on this topic, see Economy of Poland.
 A hundred z?oty note
A hundred z?oty note
 Warsaw after dark
Warsaw after dark
 Skyscrapers in Warsaw.
Skyscrapers in Warsaw.
 Spodek in Katowice.
Katowice.
 Highway A2 (European route E30) near Pozna?.
Highway A2 (European route E30) near Pozna?.
 The Marina at Gdynia.
The Marina at Gdynia.
 Lanckorona.
Lanckorona.
 ?nin - the medieval town
?nin - the medieval town
 Seacoast
Seacoast
Since its return to democracy, Poland has steadfastly pursued a policy of liberalising the economy and today stands out as one of the most successful and open examples of the transition from a partially state-capitalist market economy to a primarily privately owned market economy.
The France Telecom (2000) and an issue of 30% shares of the biggest Polish bank, PKO BP, on the Polish stockmarket (2004).
Poland has a large agricultural sector of private farms, that could be a leading producer of food in the European Union now that Poland is a member. Challenges remain, especially under-investment. Structural reforms in health care, education, the pension system, and state administration have resulted in larger-than-expected fiscal pressures. Warsaw leads Central Europe in foreign investment and allegedly needs a continued large inflow. GDP growth had been strong and steady from 1993 to 2000 with only a short slowdown from 2001 to 2002. The prospect of closer integration with the European Union has put the economy back on track, with growth of 3.7% annually in 2003, a rise from 1.4% annually in 2002. In 2004 GDP growth equalled 5.4%, and in 2005 3.3%. Forecasted GDP for 2006 is 4.3%.
Annual growth rates broken down by quarters:
2003: Q1 - 2.2% | Q2 - 3.8% | Q3 - 4.7% | Q4 - 4.7%
2004: Q1 - 6.9% | Q2 - 6.1% | Q3 - 4.8% | Q4 - 4.9%
2005: Q1 - 2.1% | Q2 - 2.8% | Q3 - 3.7% | Q4 - 4.4%
Although the Polish economy is currently undergoing an economic boom there are many challenges ahead. The most notable task on the horizon is the preparation of the economy (through continuing deep structural reforms) to allow Poland to meet the strict economic criteria for entry into the European Single Currency. There is much speculation as to just when Poland might be ready to join the Eurozone, although the best guess estimates put the entry date somewhere between 2009 and 2013. For now, Poland is preparing to make the Euro its official currency (as other countries of the European Union), and the Z?oty will eventually be abolished from the modern Polish economy. Since joining the European Union, many young Polish people have left their country to work in other EU countries because of high unemployment rate (about 17%).
Solbus) helicopters (Polpharma, Polfa, etc), food, chemical products etc.
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For more details on this topic, see Transportation in Poland.
Rail: The Polish State Railways (PKP) is one of the larger railway systems of central and western Europe, with 23,420 kilometres (14,552 mi) in its network (1998). Refurbishment of the network has commenced to bring standards into line with western European railway networks. [4]
Road: By Western European standards, Poland has a relatively poor infrastructure of expressways/highways. The Government has undertaken a programme to improve the standard of a number of significant national highways by 2013. The total length of expressways/highways is 364,657 kilometres (226,587 mi). There are a total of 9,283,000 registered passenger automobiles, as well as 1,762,000 registered trucks and buses (2000).
Air: Poland has eight major airports (in decreasing order of traffic: Katowice, Gda?sk, Pozna?, Wroc?aw, Szczecin, Bydgoszcz and Rzeszów), a total of 123 airports and airfields, as well as three heliports. The number of passengers at Polish airports has consistently increased since 1991.
Marine: The total length of navigable rivers and canals is 3,812 kilometres (2,369 mi). The Warsaw, Wroc?aw.
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 "Sta?czyk" painted by Jan Matejko.
"Sta?czyk" painted by Jan Matejko.
Polish culture has a rich thousand-year history influenced from both west and east. Today, we can see these influences in Polish architecture, folklore and art. Poland has also had a strong influence on the countries surrounding it.
For more details on this topic, see Culture of Poland.
adding to it.
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 The history of Poland is celebrated worldwide. For example, this equestrian statue of W?adys?aw II Jagie??o is on display in Central Park, New York City (United States).
The history of Poland is celebrated worldwide. For example, this equestrian statue of United States).
Human Development Index 2005: Rank 36th out of 177 countries.
Reporters Without Borders world-wide press freedom index 2004: Rank 32nd out of 167 countries.
Index of Economic Freedom 2005: Rank 41st out of 155 countries.
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