The Province of Kujawy and Pomerania 

The Province of Kujawy and Pomerania was founded on the basis of the act of 24 July, 1998 on the introduction of a basic and three-grade territorial division of the state. The province is centrally situated in the northern part of Poland between the Pomeranian and Masurian Lake Districts. It occupies the surface of 17 970 square kilometres, which makes 5.75 per cent of the total surface of Poland and it is inhabited by 2,101,000 inhabitants, i.e. 5.4 per cent of all the inhabitants of the country. The province includes 19 administrative districts and 4 cities with the right of an administrative district, namely: Bydgoszcz, Grudziądz, Toruń and Włocławek. There are 52 towns in the territory of the province.

The province has two capitals - Toruń and Bydgoszcz. The seat of the voievode and most offices of state administration were located in Bydgoszcz, while the seat the Provincial Council and agencies of municipal administration were located in Toruń.

Good condition of the natural environment is the strong side of the Province of Kujawy and Pomerania. There are many ecologically clean areas, which make a good basis for the development of tourism. They include among others the Landscape Park on the Vistula River, Brodnica Lake District, the Chełmno Lanscape Park and the Tuchola Forest. There are three health resorts in the province known in the country for their therapeutic properties, i.e. health resorts in Ciechocinek, Inowrocław and Wieniec Zdrój.

There are also important cultural and educational centres in the province. The well-known schools include the Nicolaus Copernicu University in Toruń, the Technical and Agricultural Academy in Bydgoszcz, the Kazimierz Wielki Bydgoszcz Academy, the Medical Academy and the Academy of Music. There are many valuable monuments in the Province of Kujawy and Pomerania, especially from the Middle Ages. The well-known monuments include the churches in Toruń, Chełmża, Chełmno, Strzelno, Kruszwica, Inowrocław and Mogilno as well as castles in Radzyń Chełmiński, Golub Dobrzyń, Świecie and Brodnica. The gothic cathedral in Włocławek, the monastic set of building in Koronowo, the Pakość Calvary and the fragments of late Gothic castle in Kruszwica with the Mouse Tower of King Popiel are also famous monuments. The city of Toruń is also an important cultural and tourist centre. This is the town of Nicolaus Copernicus and in 1997 it was included into the UNESCO List of World Cultural and Natural Heritage.

The number of the economic subjects registered in the province makes 4.6 per cent of all the economic subjects in the country. Most of them are registered in cities (about 75 per cent) and almost 70 per cent in the five biggest cities of the region. There are 85 economic subjects per 1000 inhabitants (88 subjects in the country as a whole). GDP per one inhabitant of the province amounted to 89.7 per cent of the national average.

Small firms employing up to five people are dominant (they make 93.8 per cent of all the companies), while firms employing over 50 people make 1.27 per cent with companies employing over 250 people making only 0.17 per cent. Private subjects are dominant with regards to their number (97.0 per cent), the number of employed people (74.1 per cent), sold production of the industry (81.5 per cent), construction and assembly sale (97.0 per cent) and the retail sale of goods (95.7 per cent).

In 2001, small and medium companies made 99.8 per cent of all the economic subjects. The proportion of small companies (up to 49 employees) amounted to 98.9 per cent and the proportion of medium companies (between 50 and 249 employees) amounted to only 0.9 per cent. Micro firms are dominant (about 85 per cent of the small companies are firms with up to 2 employees) and they are active in branches, which do not require significant investment. They have small turnover and they are characterized by a small development potential.

The industry located in the territory of the province still plays a significant role in the scale of the whole country. It employs 5.5 per cent of all the employed people in the country and it supplies 5 per cent of the total sold production of the industry. It places the province in the 6th and 7th position respectively. The Province of Kujawy and Pomerania supplies 5.1 per cent of the total industrial production in the country. The participation of the province in the national export amounts to 4.4. per cent (1.409 million USD). Industrial products according to the raw material make 1.5 per cent and various industrial products amount to 1.3 per cent.

The most important branches in regard to the value of the industrial production include alimentary industry, chemical and rubber industry as well as cellulose and paper industry. The province occupies the first position in the country with regard to the production of salt (78.7 per cent), synthetic fibres (58.5 per cent), vegetable oils (21.6 per cent), and sugar (17.2 per cent). The alimentary industry in the province is perfectly connected with the raw material base. Many companies with foreign capital acting in this branch located their operations in the region. They include French "Bonduelle" in Gniewkowo and the Establishment of Oil Industry in Kruszwica, Swiss Nestle, American General Mills, German Knorr, English British Sugar and others. UniLever in Bydgoszcz, the Soda Establishment in Janikowo, Anwil S.A. and "Elana" in Toruń are regarded as the leaders of chemical industry.

According to the data from the end of 2002, there were 184.5 thousand economic subjects registered in the REGON National Official Register of National Economic Subjects including 5.7 thousand subjects in the public sector and 178.8 thousand subjects in the private sector. The proportion of the Province of Kujawy and Pomerania in the total number of economic subjects in the country amounted to 5.3 per cent and placed the region in the 9th position right after the provinces of Pomerania and West Pomerania and in front of the Lubuskie Province.

In 2002, most of the subjects registered in the region were connected with service activity, while 20.5 per cent occupied itself with industry and construction. Among the total number of companies registered in the province, 75.1 per cent were localized in the cities. More than half of them (51.8 per cent) were localized in the four biggest cities of the region (25.2 per cent in Bydgoszcz, 5.0 per cent in Grudziądz, 13.7 per cent in Toruń and 7.9 per cent in Włocławek).

The proportion of companies with the participation of foreign capital is low in the region (10th place in the country), however, those which are found in the region belong to the leaders of the economy. Thanks to the engagement of foreign capital, many firms in the region improved their production market and way of management. In addition to those listed earlier, we should also mention Lucent Technologies, Bydgoszcz Furniture Factories, CAN-PACK, the LAFARGE - Kujawy Cement and Calcareous Group of Enterprises in Piechcin and Klose - Furniture Factory in Czersk and Nowe.

The entrepreneurs from the region attach more and more importance to the quality of their products, which increases their chances of entering the uniform market of the European Union. More than 200 firms from our province have received the ISO 9000 certificate which confirms the world quality of their products and creates chances for further development.

8 companies from our province are quoted at the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Toruń Establishment of Dressing Materials Joint Stock Company, Apator Joint Stock Company, Bydgoszcz Cable Factory and Anwil Joint Stock Company also occupy good positions in the national rankings of companies.

The tools of this service and information gathered here should be useful for exporters from the Province of Kujawy and Pomerania and foreign entrepreneurs, who would like to develop co-operation with Polish firms and for all institutions and organizations whose aim is to support and promot export.
 

The site has been created as part of the project entitled "The First Stage in the Construction of the Export Centre - Identification of Exporters", which is part of the National Programme of Export Development implemented with the use of means from technical help granted by the European Union to Poland.

The service has been prepared and is maintained by the Chamber of Industry and Commerce in Toruń with the participation of the Speaker's Office of the Province of Kujawy and Pomerania. The following institutions are partners in the implementation of the project: the Chamber of Industry and Commerce of the Province of Kujawy and Pomerania and the Economic Chamber in Grudziądz.