The global economy has remained resilient in the face of recent global disruptions, including the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, inflationary pressures, and geopolitical tensions, despite persistent uncertainty. These shocks have disrupted global value chains (GVCs) and tightened business conditions, affecting local economies and societies. While governments continue to adapt policy responses to mitigate economic volatility, signs of a full recovery remain uneven. Global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows remain below pre-pandemic levels, while fiscal policies are gradually tightening, leading to a phase-out of temporary support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In this context, reinforcing economic resilience and promoting sustainable and inclusive growth is a key priority.
Since the early 1990s, Poland has experienced strong and sustained economic growth, driving convergence towards OECD and EU income levels. Its strategic location, diversified industrial base, and competitive labour market have positioned Poland as a leading destination for FDI, facilitating deeper integration into European and global production networks. However, foreign investment remains concentrated in medium-productivity industries, with relatively low engagement in high-value-added and R&D-intensive activities. Polish SMEs lag behind larger firms in terms of labour productivity and innovation and face challenges in scaling up their business operations and retaining skilled workers. To build a more resilient and sustainable economy, Poland needs to boost the innovation and productivity of SMEs and provide them with the support needed to engage in higher value-added activities as suppliers and partners of foreign multinational enterprises (MNEs).
Beyond its direct contribution to capital and employment, FDI can serve as a conduit for domestic SMEs to access international markets and benefit from knowledge spillovers that result in the diffusion of innovation, new technologies and skills in local economies. FDI and SME linkages can contribute to the growth and upgrading of smaller firms and to productivity gains for the economy as a whole if diffusion channels and supportive conditions enable spillovers. Governments at national and subnational levels have a crucial role to play in building FDI-SME ecosystems and setting conducive institutional and policy frameworks. The OECD, with the support of the European Commission (EC), is conducting a multi-year project to advise governments on developing FDI-SME ecosystems to drive resilient, sustainable and inclusive growth.
This report provides an assessment of FDI and SME linkages in Poland and proposes policy options to improve their contribution to productivity and innovation. It provides a diagnostic assessment of the enabling conditions for FDI spillovers on Polish SMEs and explores the extent to which spillover channels are at play. It also assesses Poland’s institutional environment and policy mix across the areas of international investment, SME development, innovation and regional development. The last chapter of the report looks at FDI-SME spillovers and related policy approaches through a regional lens.
The report was jointly developed by the OECD Committee on SMEs and Entrepreneurship and the OECD Investment Committee and contributes to their respective Programmes of Work. The report was approved by written procedure by the two Committees on 17 March 2024.