The development of local government units is determined by many factors. The most important is the financial condition, which determines the possibilities of the effective implementation of tasks, both current and as an investment. In the face of an unstable macroeconomic environment, as well as growing expectations of residents regarding the improvement of living standards, local government finance management takes place under conditions of strong pressure and great uncertainty. Therefore, a rational budget policy is a prerequisite for achieving the approved development goals. It should be based on greater control of the performance and discipline in the use of budget funds. The purpose of this article is to assess and compare the financial situation of small towns and large cities in Poland in 2012-2018. The study used budget indicators in the areas of revenues, operating surplus and indebtedness. The study made it possible to draw conclusions regarding the development opportunities of Polish cities.
Motivation: The concept of inclusive growth is considered as an instrument used to reduce many of today's developmental inequalities. It assumes, on the one hand, a reduction in the disparities in the level of income of society, and, on the other hand, the desire to increase the standard of living. The latter aspect is particularly important in the socio-economic development policy at the regional and local levels. This is due to the possibility of participation and thus the impact of citizens on many dimensions of well-being, such as, health, safety or education. New public policy models provide such opportunities. They assume the involvement of a wide range of non-governmental actors in the planning and implementation of joint development activities.Aim: The purpose of the article is to identify instruments for implementing the concept of inclusive growth in Poland. Particular emphasis was placed on social participation in the process of making public decisions in cities.Results: Polish cities have been implementing the New Governance principles for over a dozen years, especially those regarding broad socialization of development policy. Examples include revitalization programs, hackathons and civic budgets, which create extensive opportunities for external entities to participate in public decision-making. Despite the fact that they show many limitations related to low attendance and social activity, they are treated as instruments for recognizing social needs and meeting them better. In this context, they are consistent with the demands of the inclusive growth concept.
Motivation: The concept of inclusive growth is considered as an instrument used to reduce many of today's developmental inequalities. It assumes, on the one hand, a reduction in the disparities in the level of income of society, and, on the other hand, the desire to increase the standard of living. The latter aspect is particularly important in the socio-economic development policy at the regional and local levels. This is due to the possibility of participation and thus the impact of citizens on many dimensions of well-being, such as, health, safety or education. New public policy models provide such opportunities. They assume the involvement of a wide range of non-governmental actors in the planning and implementation of joint development activities.Aim: The purpose of the article is to identify instruments for implementing the concept of inclusive growth in Poland. Particular emphasis was placed on social participation in the process of making public decisions in cities.Results: Polish cities have been implementing the New Governance principles for over a dozen years, especially those regarding broad socialization of development policy. Examples include revitalization programs, hackathons and civic budgets, which create extensive opportunities for external entities to participate in public decision-making. Despite the fact that they show many limitations related to low attendance and social activity, they are treated as instruments for recognizing social needs and meeting them better. In this context, they are consistent with the demands of the inclusive growth concept.
The main aim of analysisis to determine the innovation potential and the level in the Visegrad Group regions, 25 years after the start of economic transformation. The reference point in the analysis is the European Union and its average values in terms of selected innovation indicators. Two methods were used in the analysis. The theoretical part uses a method of literature studies. In the empirical part - a comparative method, which used the comparison of the Visegrad Group states and the average for the entire EU, in the scope of selected indicators of innovation potential. Results of a research. Innovation and innovativeness are no longer exclusively associated with economic activity. They also refer to public management and human attitudes. Innovativeness of the region is a component of innovation of all units operating in a given territory and determines the achievement of competitive advantage. The Visegrad Group was formed in the early 1990s. It clusters neighboring countries of Central and Eastern Europe, which began economic transformation at the same time. The innovative potential of the Visegrad Group regions is low, comparing to the EU average. What is worse, in recent years the distance in many elements of this potential has deepened. As an example are such indicators as: expenditures of enterprises on research and development, participation in lifelong learning, or employment in the high-tech sector. One of the few potentials that can determine the economics competitiveness of V4 group, in the future, is human capital and a high level of education in society. As a result of the analysis, it also turned out that among the Visegrad Group countries, the most innovative potential lies in the Czech and Hungarian regions. This was also reflected in the summary ranking of innovativeness. What is also important, relatively high level of innovation potential of the capital regions, which are characterized by high entrepreneurship, higher level of education and higher research and development activity of enterprises. Range of application of results: government agencies supporting innovation, local government units responsible for regional innovation, entrepreneurs. Conclusions. Innovativeness is considered today as a key determinant of the countries and regions competitiveness. The low innovation potential of the Visegrad Group regions affects their weak economic position in relation to more developed countries. Therefore, it is crucial that the authorities should support individual elements of this potential, especially university education.
Social participation enables citizens to take part in the decision-making process. It is an increasingly popular instrument in Poland. The effectiveness of participation is the most important issue in this context. In accordance with the Act of 9 October 2015, urban regeneration mainly applies to mitigating negative social phenomena. The social aspect is also important at the stage of establishing urban regeneration programmes. Extensive social participation in the process of creating these programmes is one of the main requirements. The aim of the article is to present the scale of the involvement of local communities in the procedure of creating regeneration programmes in selected small towns in Poland. Conclusions from the analysis include an assessment of participation success rate in regeneration activities.
W ostatnich latach wystąpiło szereg niekorzystnych tendencji ekonomicznych związanych z funkcjonowaniem sektora samorządowego w Polsce. Dotyczyły one m.in. spadku dochodów i wzrostu poziomu zadłużenia. Celem artykułu jest zidentyfikowanie kondycji finansowej wybranych miast na prawach powiatu. Szczególną uwagę poświęcono analizie poszczególnych typów dochodów i wydatków tych jednostek oraz dynamice ich zadłużenia. W podsumowaniu zawarto wnioski dotyczące sytuacji ekonomicznej wybranych miast.
The growing flow of people into cities causes several challenges for their functioning. This brings the need to ensure, for example, efficient transport, sustainable waste, and appropriate energy policy. Particularly capital cities are exposed to the above-mentioned risks, due to their large numbers and densities of inhabitants. Therefore, the state of the environment in cities should be monitored systematically. The research aim of this article is to evaluate the level of environmental sustainability in capitals of European Union countries. A synthetic indicator was made up of diagnostic variables, using quantitative and qualitative indicators relating to the quality of the environment. Based on the ranking, results reveal that Europe is spatially divided according to the level of environmental quality. The best results were achieved by capital cities of the northern European countries. The analysis presented here has some application potential. It can serve to identify challenges to improving the quality of the environment, and to raise public awareness of the importance of changing individual behaviour (e.g., use of public transport).
The growing flow of people into cities causes several challenges for their functioning. This brings the need to ensure, for example, efficient transport, sustainable waste, and appropriate energy policy. Particularly capital cities are exposed to the above-mentioned risks, due to their large numbers and densities of inhabitants. Therefore, the state of the environment in cities should be monitored systematically. The research aim of this article is to evaluate the level of environmental sustainability in capitals of European Union countries. A synthetic indicator was made up of diagnostic variables, using quantitative and qualitative indicators relating to the quality of the environment. Based on the ranking, results reveal that Europe is spatially divided according to the level of environmental quality. The best results were achieved by capital cities of the northern European countries. The analysis presented here has some application potential. It can serve to identify challenges to improving the quality of the environment, and to raise public awareness of the importance of changing individual behaviour (e.g., use of public transport).
The NGOs cooperate with self-government because they have common goals, as well as because of the public funds that are at the disposal of territorial authorities. Public authorities should to higher extend delegate the public tasks to NGOs as those organizations, undertaking a part of public tasks devoted to self- -governments, fill in the gaps in meeting the inhabitants' needs, as well as solve numerous social problems in territorial units. The article presents the selected aspects of cooperation between NGOs in Poland and public authorities operation on a regional level. Firstly, the place and role of NGOs in the economy and society was presented. The next part concerns areas of cooperation of self-government units with NGOs in Poland. The analysis of financial cooperation between the given partners was presented on an example of the regional situation of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Self-government. ; Organizacje pozarządowe współpracują z samorządem terytorialnym ze względu na wspólne cele oraz środki publiczne będące w gestii władz terytorialnych. Władze te powinny w większym stopniu delegować zadania publiczne do tych organizacji, gdyż pozwoliłoby to na uzupełnienie luki w zaspokojeniu potrzeb mieszkańców oraz rozwiązywać różnorakie problemy społeczne we wspólnotach terytorialnych. Tekst prezentuje wybrane aspekty współpracy pomiędzy organizacjami pozarządowymi w Polsce a samorządem terytorialnym, szczególnie województwami. Na początku przedstawiono miejsce i rolę organi-zacji pozarządowych w gospodarce i społeczeństwie. Następna część dotyczy płaszczyzn współpracy jednostek samorządowych z tymi organizacjami w Polsce. Analiza współpracy pomiędzy wymienionymi partnerami w gospodarce regionalnej w aspekcie finansowym została dokonana na przykładzie samorządu województwa kujawsko-pomorskiego.
The NGOs cooperate with self-government because they have common goals, as well as because of the public funds that are at the disposal of territorial authorities. Public authorities should to higher extend delegate the public tasks to NGOs as those organizations, undertaking a part of public tasks devoted to self- -governments, fill in the gaps in meeting the inhabitants' needs, as well as solve numerous social problems in territorial units. The article presents the selected aspects of cooperation between NGOs in Poland and public authorities operation on a regional level. Firstly, the place and role of NGOs in the economy and society was presented. The next part concerns areas of cooperation of self-government units with NGOs in Poland. The analysis of financial cooperation between the given partners was presented on an example of the regional situation of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Self-government. ; Organizacje pozarządowe współpracują z samorządem terytorialnym ze względu na wspólne cele oraz środki publiczne będące w gestii władz terytorialnych. Władze te powinny w większym stopniu delegować zadania publiczne do tych organizacji, gdyż pozwoliłoby to na uzupełnienie luki w zaspokojeniu potrzeb mieszkańców oraz rozwiązywać różnorakie problemy społeczne we wspólnotach terytorialnych. Tekst prezentuje wybrane aspekty współpracy pomiędzy organizacjami pozarządowymi w Polsce a samorządem terytorialnym, szczególnie województwami. Na początku przedstawiono miejsce i rolę organi-zacji pozarządowych w gospodarce i społeczeństwie. Następna część dotyczy płaszczyzn współpracy jednostek samorządowych z tymi organizacjami w Polsce. Analiza współpracy pomiędzy wymienionymi partnerami w gospodarce regionalnej w aspekcie finansowym została dokonana na przykładzie samorządu województwa kujawsko-pomorskiego.
