The final countdown to the European Economic Congress 2017

On 10-12 May 2017, Katowice will host the ninth edition of the European Economic Congress, the most important business meeting in Central Europe. On Friday, details of the upcoming event have been presented.

The three-day series of debates of the European Economic Congress (EEC) will take place at the International Conference Centre and at the ‘Spodek’ Arena, the latter of which will play host to the participants in the main accompanying event - the European Start-up Days (ESD).

The organisers have planned to hold 132 sessions attended by approximately 700 speakers - there will be approximately 11,880 hours of substantive debates in total. Representatives of the administration of the European Union, representatives of both Polish and European Parliaments, and Ministers and Deputy Ministers from Poland and abroad will all meet in Katowice.

The group of guests will also include presidents of the largest enterprises and numerous businessmen from Europe, Africa and Asia, as well as representatives of financial institutions and local authorities.

‘We expect to receive approximately eight thousand participants in the EEC, as well as two and a half thousand guests of the ESD and two thousand people as part of the Young Leaders project. These numbers attest to the scale of interest in the upcoming event,’ emphasised Wojciech Kuśpik, Initiator of the EEC and Chairman of the Board of the PTWP Group.

He pointed out that, although the agenda of the Congress keeps pace with the current economic situation of Poland and Europe, the EEC will remain an open forum for debate, being additionally enhanced with the attendance of debaters from other continents.

‘Each year, the unique atmosphere of the Congress favours an exchange of views and knowledge, provides excellent conditions for creation of interesting projects, and acts as a stimulus for new businesses as well as to the development of the entire region,’ indicated Kuśpik.

As he added, the participants in the EEC attend from several to over a dozen business meetings on average, so the number of meetings of this type can be estimated at even over 100 thousand in total during the three days of the Congress.

Professor Jerzy Buzek, Member of the European Parliament and former President of the European Parliament, pointed out that the agenda of the Congress has always focused on key topics. First, it was the energy industry, then the financial crisis, Polish Presidency in the EU, the new budget of the European Union, economic expansion in Africa, innovation, the Juncker’s Plan, or the Energy Union and Digital Union.

‘This year, the leading topics will include the future of Europe and the EU project. Apart from that, we will also debate on what the new free-market system should look like because a number of objections have been raised to the current one,’ stated the former Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland.

Marcin Krupa, Mayor of Katowice, stated that the benefits resulting from the EEC for the city, in terms of both the economy and the image, are countless. He added that the Congress is an event, thanks to which the city has started attracting business guests. In 2016, the events of the Congress taking place in the capital of the Silesian Voivodeship brought together approximately 760 thousand participants, that is, 180 thousand more than the year before.

‘The EEC is an event imbued with quality and importance to the history of the city. I am glad that we return to the topic of the metropolis during the debates of the Congress because we are on the brink of its creation. We will organise the next Congress in an already existing metropolis,’ said Krupa, thus referring to the Metropolitan Act for the Silesian Voivodeship, which has recently been signed by President Andrzej Duda.

Jarosław Wieczorek, Voivode of Silesia, pointed out that during the last year’s edition of the EEC Prime Minister Beata Szydło announced that the government is to prepare the Metropolitan Act for the region. Wieczorek emphasised that her announcement has been fulfilled.

‘The EEC has already become part of the timetable of the most important congresses, not only in Europe, but all around the world as well. The success of Silesia and the region is the fact that such an event takes place in Katowice,’ emphasised the Voivode, adding that a strong representation of the Polish government will attend the Congress this year as well.

Wojciech Saługa, Marshal of the Silesian Voivodeship, assessed that the EEC have formed part of the region’s policy for years.

‘We‘re delighted with the metropolis and, at the same time, we enter into a debate on the future of local governments, that is, whether to move towards further centralisation or decentralisation,’ said Saługa.

Once again, the University of Economics in Katowice will be involved in the events of the EEC. The students of this university participate in the Young Leaders project, as part of which they help to organise the Congress and attend special lectures.

‘For years, the University of Economics in Katowice has been the natural base for the EEC,’ indicated Professor Robert Tomanek, Rector of the university.

Mariusz Turski, Co-Founder of the AIP, Business Link and the bValue fund, stressed that the EEC provides Polish start-ups with an opportunity to establish co-operation with big business.

‘We have managed to create a network between business and start-ups. It is here that one can make acquaintances. Many of them culminated with entering into contracts and developing businesses,’ indicated Turski.