Poland Today: Challenges and Opportunities H.E. Mr Andrzej Jaroszynski, Ambassador for Poland,

A country of 38 million people, Poland has witnessed dramatic changes since the collapse of Communism just over two decades ago. The introduction of ‘shock therapy’ in the early 1990s resulted in the transformation of Poland from a Soviet-style planned economy to one embracing market forces. After some initial reverses, Poland has experienced sustained economic growth, well beyond that of other eastern European countries. The opening up of the economy and the flowering of democratic institutions has enabled Poland to become fully integrated within European community.

As a member of NATO (since 1999) and as a full member of the European Union (since 2004), Poland plays an active role in European affairs, particularly through its representation in the European Parliament. As a member of the international community, Poland’s military has participated in a number of United Nations’ peacekeeper roles.

Although bilateral economic and trade relations between Poland and Australia have in the past been relatively limited, opportunities for expansion are occurring and Australian direct investment in Poland has been growing. An important factor in the relations between the two countries is the role of the Polish community in Australia, which amounts to some 164,000 people of Polish origin, about half of whom were born in Poland.

This event is an opportunity to hear from the Polish Ambassador to Australia, H.E. Mr Jaroszynski, about how Poland sees itself in the world today. He will outline Poland’s foreign policy and discuss contemporary social and economic conditions in his country.

H.E. Mr Jaroszynski has been Polish Ambassador to Australia since late 2008. Since joining the Polish foreign service in 1990, he has served overseas in Chicago, Washington, as deputy head of mission, and in Oslo, as Ambassador to Norway. Immediately before taking up his current position in Canberra, he was director of the Department of the Americas in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Warsaw. A graduate from the University of Maria Curie-Sklodowska, His Excellency held a number of academic positions at the Catholic University of Lubin, before joining the Polish diplomatic service.