Expertise on the creation of cluster policy, programs and actions in Poland covers a study done by the Institute of Economics at UITM for the Office of the City of Rzeszów. It was carried out within the project ‘ClusterCOOP – Supporting effective transnational cooperation between clusters in Central European countries’ in international cooperation in which one of the partners is the Office of the City of Rzeszów.

The main aim of the expertise was to conduct a review of the current documents on cluster policy at the national and regional levels (with particular emphasis on the southeast regions of Poland) and to gather qualitative data from key experts involved in the process of creating regional cluster policy, in order to evaluate cluster activities and also to gather information from cluster members themselves. The experts responses in this realm are particularly valuable.

Key Conclusions

• Document analysis showed that there is a lack of a cohesive definition of a cluster or clustering in the specific documentation. Some of these do not even attempt to define what is to be understood by the term, assuming that the term is ‘commonly known.’
• The study showed that among other things, regional cluster policy and programs for financing should be adapted for the sector which dominates in a particular field or sector, in which there lies great potential and which at the same time distinguishes a region from others.
• The study also revealed the various ways in which cluster structures are financed, such as by internal funds of the businesses within the cluster or with external funds (mostly from the European Union). Quite often it was said that thanks to these recent funding opportunities and support from public funding clusters have strengthened their position, their significance has grown and they have expanded their zones of impact.
• Support for cluster inititiaves is the strategic goal most often formulated for cluster policy. The experience of other countries has shown that support for specific sectors, the creation of a distinction of quality where from the point of view of economic endogenous potential is greatest and not where it is lacking. This was confirmed by the opinion of one of the experts: 

“Saving everything, creating ‘just average firms’ is not the best growth policy for a given region, but the choice of these paths to development, which will bring the greatest results. This is confirmed not only by the experience of other countries like Finland or Norway, but also in economic theories, according to which if we see in ourselves or in others greater potential in some field, it is exactly there that we should focus on growth, and not try to be ‘average’ in everything.”.

• A fundamental barrier in cluster growth in Poland is a clear lack of desire to cooperate among firms. This most often is a result of fears of an economic nature, which is just the opposite of the experience throughout the world, which is that joint economic potential allows you to achieve ‘more’. This situation can be changed and it can simultanously be a factor in cluster development, changing attitudes, and the persuasion of more companies that within a cluster structure they will find greater benefits – ‘by uniting their strength’.
• The strength of clusters lies within the strength of the firms which are within the structure and also within the strength and potential of leading scientific centers. Low funding for research will result in low level results. A cluster in a certain sense prevents this by focussing entities within a group which are able to finance specific studies, the synergy effect of potential is much greater than it would be for each single entity within the cluster on its own.
• Cluster policy is an important element which impacts regional economic growth and the economic potential of a region. Among the opinion of those surveyed the dominant view was that the future of the eocnomy lies in a manufacturing symbiosis or industrial parks, unions of synergy, of which the cluster is an example.

Contact the Institute of Economics if you are interested in the entire report.