Country Facts - Poland

The People

Nationality
Polish

Ethnic Composition

Poles	97.6%
German	1.3%
Ukranian	0.6%
Byelorussian	0.5%

Religious Composition

Roman Catholic	95%
Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, other	5%

Languages Spoken

Polish is the official language, but English, French, German, and Russian are also understood to varying degrees.

Education and Literacy

Virtually the entire population, about 99%, is literate. All primary and secondary education is free.

Labor Force

Total: 17.6 million (2000)
By occupation:

Agriculture	27.5%
Industry	22.1%
Services	50.4%

Geography

Land Mass Total

120,728 sq mi (312,685 sq km)

Land

117,554 sq mi (304,465 sq km)

Water

3,173 sq mi (8,220 sq km)

Land Boundaries

Total: 1,732 mi (2,788 km)
Border countries: Belarus 252 mi (407 km), Czech Republic 408 mi (658 km), Germany 283 mi (456 km), Lithuania 56 mi (91 km), Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast)
128 mi (206 km), Slovakia 275 mi (444 km), Ukraine 326 mi (526 km)

Coastline

305 mi (491 km)

Maritime claim

Exclusive economic zone: defined by international treaties
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate/Weather

Temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers.

Terrain

Mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border

Elevation extremes

Lowest: Raczki Elblaskie 6.5 ft (2 m)
Highest: Rysy 8,198 ft (2,499 m)

Natural Resources

Coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, arable land

Land use

Arable land	46%
Permanent crops	1%
Other	53%

(1998)

Natural hazards

Flooding

Environment - current issues

Situation has improved since 1989 due to decline in heavy industry and increased environmental concern by post-communist governments; air pollution nonetheless remains serious because of sulfur dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants, and the resulting acid rain has caused forest damage; water pollution from industrial and municipal sources is also a problem, as is disposal of hazardous wastes.

Geography Note

Historically, Poland has been an area of conflict because of flat terrain and the lack of natural barriers on the North European Plain.

Demographics

Population

38,625,478 (July 2002)

Age structure

0-14 years:	17.9%	Male: 3,535,701	Female: 3,361,515
15-64 years:	69.5%	Male: 13,358,128	Female: 13,500,443
65 years and over:	12.6%	Male: 1,860,274	Female: 3,009,417

(2002))

Growth Rate

-0.02% (2002)

Life Expectancy

73.66 years (2002)
Female: 78.05 years
Male: 69.52 years

GDP Per Capita

Purchasing power parity
US$8,800 (2001)

Infant Mortality

9.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2002)

Sex ratio

At birth:	1.06 male(s)/female
Under 15 years:	1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:	0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over:	0.62 male(s)/female
Total population:	0.94 male(s)/female

(2002)

Net migration rate

-0.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002)

Economy & Trade

Poland has steadfastly pursued a policy of liberalizing the economy and today stands out as one of the most successful and open transition economies. GDP growth had been strong and steady in 1993-2000 but fell back in 2001 with slowdowns in domestic investment and consumption and the weakening in the global economy. The privatization of small and medium state-owned companies and a liberal law on establishing new firms have allowed for the rapid development of a vibrant private sector. In contrast, Poland's large agricultural sector remains handicapped by structural problems, surplus labor, inefficient small farms, and lack of investment. Restructuring and privatization of "sensitive sectors" (e.g., coal, steel, railroads, and energy) has begun. Structural reforms in health care, education, the pension system, and state administration have resulted in larger than expected fiscal pressures. Further progress in public finance depends mainly on privatization of Poland's remaining state sector. The government's drive to enter the E.U. affects most aspects of its economic policies. Improving Poland's outsized current account deficit and reining in inflation were priorities. The hard work has paid off, and Poland will join the E.U. in 2004. Poland, like other Eastern European applicants, is greatly dissatisfied with Brussels' tight-fisted agricultural subsidies for new members. Warsaw leads the region in foreign investment, but still needs a continued large inflow. Poland's biggest problem is that of high unemployment, which is almost double that of the E.U. average. This unemployment figure also spooks the elder members of the E.U. They fear an onslaught of skilled Polish workers seeking jobs in developed E.U. markets, but demanding considerably lower wages.

Unemployment

16.7% (2001)

Inflation Rate

5.3% (2001)

Industries

Machine building, iron and steel, coal mining, chemicals, shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages, textiles

Exports

US$30.8 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Imports

US$41.7 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Total Trade

Purchasing power parity
GDP US$339.6 billion (2001)

Top Export Partners

Germany 34.9%, Italy 6.3%, France 5.2%, Netherlands 5.1%, UK 4.5%, Czech Republic 3.8% (2000)

Top Import Partners

Germany 23.9%, Russia 9.4%, Italy 8.3%, France 6.4%, UK 4.5%, US 4.4% (2000)

Top Exports

Machinery and transport equipment 30.2%, intermediate manufactured goods 25.5%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 20.9%, food and live animals 8.5%

Top Imports

Machinery and transport equipment 38.2%, intermediate manufactured goods 20.8%, chemicals 14.3%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 9.5%

Debt - external

US$57 billion (2000)

Economic aid

US$4.312 billion (1995)

Fiscal Year:

Calendar year

Business Workweek

	Monday - Friday	Saturday - Sunday
Offices	8a.m. to 4p.m.	Closed
Retail	10a.m. to 7p.m. Department stores 9a.m. to 8p.m.	Slightly shorter hours on the weekend.
Banks	8a.m. to 6p.m.	Saturday 9a.m. to 1p.m.
Government	8a.m. to 6p.m.	Closed

Holidays

Official Holidays

Holidays	2003	2004	2005
New Year's Day	January 1	January 1	January 1
Easter¹	April 20	April 11	March 27
Easter Monday	April 21	April 12	March 28
May Day	May 1	May 1	May 1
Constitution Day	May 3	May 3	May 3
Corpus Christi²	June 19	June 10	May 26
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary	August 15	August 15	August 15
All Saints' Day	November 1	November 1	November 1
Independence Day	November 11	November 11	November 11
Christmas Day³	December 25	December 25	December 25
Boxing Day	December 26	December 26	December 26

¹	Easter, a Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, is the first Sunday after the full moon and the vernal equinox (fixed in the Gregorian calendar at March 21), and often observed with Good Friday and Easter Monday. In the West, Easter is predicted using the Gregorian calendar, while Eastern Orthodox Christians use the much older Julian calendar, and celebrate 13 days later.
²	Western Catholic feast commemorating the Eucharist, takes place 60 days after Easter, and is typically the time when believers take their first communion.
³	Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. In A.D.320, Pope Julius I fixed the date at December 25 based on the Gregorian calendar. The Orthodox church calculates Christmas using the Julian calendar and celebrates 13 days later on January 7.

Country information used by permission of World Trade Press