3. Cultural and creative sectors
Poland
Last update: December, 2020
The National Development Strategy Supplement for 2004-2020 emphasises the need for establishing modern solutions to protect and promote Polish heritage. The National Heritage Board of Poland is an institution responsible for such actions (including the protection of twelve Polish cultural heritage objects placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List).
The main objectives of the Heritage Board are to gather and disseminate information on heritage, set standards for its protection and conservation, and aim to raise social awareness on the cultural heritage of Poland in order to save it for future generations in accordance with the strategy for sustainable development.
Other national institutes responsible for heritage preservation and protection are:
- The National Institute for Museums and Public Collections. Its mission is to create development and innovation in the field of managing museums and public collections in Poland. It will be implemented by researching and initiating legislative solutions, providing support to museum institutions in all areas of their activity, creating modern scientific, managerial and educational programmes, gathering and popularising knowledge, and building and updating an integrated information system on museology and collections.
- The State Archives. Its tasks are: shaping the state archival resources; recording, storing, developing, protecting and sharing archival materials belonging to the archival resource; conducting scientific and publishing works in the field of archival science and related fields; and popularising knowledge about archival materials and archives as well as conducting information activities.
Currently, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage runs subsidy programmes for:
- Memorial sites and permanent memorials in the country. The aim of the programme is to support local governments in providing stable care over the most important memorial sites, which are material testimony to events that are key to national identity.
- War graves and cemeteries in the country. The aim of the programme is to support the care of war graves and cemeteries in the territory of the Republic of Poland, constituting material evidence of key events in the history of Poland related to struggle and martyrdom, as well as to support scientific activities disseminating knowledge about these events
- Protection of archaeological monuments. The aim of the programme is to protect the archaeological heritage by supporting the key tasks for this area, including the identification and documentation of archaeological heritage resources as well as the preparation and publication of the results of archaeological research.
- Protection of cultural heritage abroad. The aim of the programme is to improve the state of preservation and strengthen the protection of cultural heritage located outside the territory of the Republic of Poland, and to disseminate knowledge about it.
- Supporting museum activities. The aim of the programme is to support activities in the field of conservation care of museums, archives and book collections, as well as the presentation of the collections in the form of cognitively attractive exhibition and publishing projects.
- Protection of monuments. The aim of the programme is to preserve the tangible cultural heritage, through the conservation and restoration of immovable and movable monuments, and making them available for public purposes.
Last update: December, 2020
The National Library of Poland acts as the central library of the country and is one of the most important cultural institutions in Poland. Its mission is to protect national heritage preserved as documents, be it handwritten, printed or electronic (including sound recordings and audiovisual material). As stated on their website: “The primary task of the National Library is to acquire, store and permanently archive the intellectual output of Poles, including the works of citizens living on Polish soil, the most important foreign works, and publications related to Poland and published abroad.”
Currently, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage runs subsidy programmes for:
- Partnership for the book. The strategic goals of the programme are both to improve access to books in all its formats and to strengthen the culture-forming role of bookstores and libraries.
- Reading promotion. The aim of the programme is to support valuable forms of promoting reading, both by co-financing innovative, wide-ranging programmes promoting common reading practices, and by supporting projects promoting the most significant phenomena of contemporary literature.
Last update: December, 2020
There are two institutes responsible for performing arts in Poland:
- Zbigniew Raszewski Theatrical Institute – responsible for documentation, promotion and animation of Polish theatre life. The institute invokes public debate on contemporary Polish theatre, broadens the perspectives of accompanying scientific reflections, and supports research and educational activities.
- Institute of Music and Dance – established on 1 October 2010 by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage. Its creation was preceded by a sector consultation and a three month preparation of the development strategy with the Polish organisations and institutions active in the field of music and dance. A key mission of the Institute is to act for the development of music and dance culture in Poland.
Currently, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage runs subsidy programmes for:
- Theatre and Dance. The aim of the programme is to support the most valuable phenomena and trends in contemporary theatre and dance.
- Music. The aim of the programme is to support the most valuable phenomena and trends in Polish and world music culture.
Last update: December, 2020
The Polish Craft Association, which was established in 1933, provides training programmes on environmental standards to promote awareness of these standards amongst small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Together with 28 regional chambers, 478 guilds and 180 cooperatives it represent the interests of SMEs in view of government and regulatory bodies, public administration, courts and social-economic organisations. The association is very active in the vocational education, as its members offer a wide range of training opportunities (especially in handicraft and artistic professions).
Through the membership in the European Union of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEunited), the Polish Craft Association participates in the European social dialogue.
Currently, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage runs subsidy programmes for:
- National Collection of Contemporary Art of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage. The aim of the programme is to create and develop representative, international collections of contemporary art with the rank of national collections in order to strengthen the exhibition system and the field of visual arts in Poland.
- Visual arts. The aim of the programme is to support the most valuable phenomena in Polish contemporary art and to popularise the most interesting phenomena of Polish and world art in Poland.
Last update: December, 2020
State intervention in the functioning of the cultural industries is limited to regulating access of different producers to the marketplace, providing direct subsidies to selected activities and introducing tax incentives and allowances which could facilitate the development of different areas of the industry.
Over the last few years, the number of enterprises whose activities are classified as ‘cultural and creative industries’ has been systematically growing. In 2018, it reached the level of 117.2 thousand entities operating in various fields of broadly understood culture. The most frequently represented areas of culture in 2018 were: advertising (28.9 thousand entities), books and press (27.0 thousand) and architecture (18.8 thousand).
Most of the entities were organised in the form of micro-enterprises (98.9% of all entities classified as cultural and creative industries). In 2018, there were a total of 116.0 thousand of them, which accounted for 5.6% of all micro-enterprises. In the remaining size classes of enterprises, the share of the cultural and creative industries was as follows: small – 1.9%, medium – 1.3%, large – 1.2%.
In 2018, 241.5 thousand people worked in enterprises classified as the cultural and creative industries (12.5 thousand people more than in 2017), which constituted 2.4% of the total number of people working in non-financial enterprises. Micro-enterprises concentrated 70.5% of working people, large enterprises – 13.4%, small enterprises – 8.1% and medium-sized enterprises – 8.0%.
In 2018, entities included in the cultural and creative industries achieved revenues of PLN 83.3 billion, with total costs amounting to PLN 74.6 billion (data from the Central Statistical Office).
In recent years, the creative sectors have become one of the areas of interest of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. A special programme called Creative Sector was created, which aims to develop the Polish cultural and creative sectors and to strengthen their competitiveness both in the EU and beyond. The grant programme supports in particular: educational activities related to these sectors, research projects, prototyping, development and export of products.
Last update: December, 2020
In 2018, the Polish book market accounted for approximately 3% of the European publishing market. At the end of 2017, almost 42,000 publishers in Poland were registered in the ISBN database maintained by the National Library. No more than 2000–2500 of them are active (they publish several books a year). However, the market is still highly concentrated. Almost 97% of the market is in the group of almost 300 entities. About 600-700 companies publish over ten books annually. Most of the other registered publishers publish a very limited number of books (The Polish Book Institute).
In 2015 Poland, introduced the so-called Public Lending Rights (PLR). These are royalties paid on loans that compensate authors and publishers for losses from the proceeds caused by borrowing books from libraries.
For many years, the major instrument used to support the book market was the 0% VAT rate for publishing and printing, domestic sale of books, newspapers and periodicals bearing ISSN and ISBN numbers, and publications in Braille. From December 2007, VAT for these goods was raised to 5% starting from 2011. Items without ISSN and ISBN numbers have a 8% VAT rate, as well as books, magazines and printed goods imported from abroad. Since April 1st 2020, the VAT rate for e-books and paper books has been levelled to 5% and the rate for e-press and paper press- to 8%. The exception will be regional and local magazines that are published in forms other than electronic. In these cases, the VAT rate of 5% will be maintained. So far, there exist no data on the impact of the VAT raise to the sector.
The Polish Book Institute finances translations of Polish literature into foreign languages in the framework of the Translation Programme © POLAND.
Last update: December, 2020
In the field of cinema, the new Cinematography Act (2005) was a very important step forward. Under this Act, the Polish Film Institute, which acts de facto as a non-departmental public body, was created.
The Polish Film Institute is the newest film institute in Europe. It is responsible directly to the Minister of Culture and National Heritage. The Institute’s board is appointed by the Minister and comprises eleven people chosen from the film community. The Institute's tasks, as specified in the Act on Cinematography, are among others: to create conditions for the development of Polish film production and international co-production; to inspire and support the development of all types of Polish film creativity, in particular artistic films, including the development of film projects and the production and distribution of such films; to support film debuts and the artistic development of young filmmakers; to subsidise enterprises in developing film projects, film production, distribution and dissemination of films, and in providing assistance and expert services to public administration and to support the upkeep of film archives. At least 60% of the budget of the Institute is allocated for film production.
As stated on their website: “Film Commission Poland is a non-profit organisation established in 2012 in order both to improve recognition of Poland and its regions as film locations and to put the potential of the Polish audiovisual sector to effective use. Its primary purpose is threefold: to coordinate the work of national and regional entities in attracting foreign film productions to Poland; to ensure a cohesive promotion of the audiovisual potential abroad; and to provide support for foreign productions made in the country.”
Last update: December, 2020
The characteristics of the music market in Poland are similar to those of other countries in the world. The following trends can be observed in both Poland and the rest of the world:
- An increase in the value of the music and system markets, return to the value before the crisis that the market had been facing since the 2000s;
- An increase of the share of independent record labels in the phonographic market;
- Increasing importance of streaming and the Internet in promoting the decisions of creators;
- An increase in the concert market share in artists revenues.
The Polish music market distinguishes itself from the world market in the following ways:
- A greater share of sales of physical carriers in the phonographic market and no clear deviation from these format;
- Great importance of radio and reaching its listeners, which does not change despite the growing importance of streaming platforms and the Internet;
- Relative low popularity of disco polo - a genre that occurs only in Poland;
- Polish artists are definitely more popular than foreign ones. This difference is especially pronounced in the case of hip hop.
Institutional support for the music market in Poland
- Institutional support provided to musicians of a diverse nature and manifested in the activities of public entities (Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, public institutes), market entities (media) and non-governmental entities (associations, foundations, copyright management associations);
- There are two main paths of providing support - direct (programmes, scholarships, competitions, awards) and indirect (promotion, popularization);
- Among public institutions, the main supporting entities are: the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, institutions supervised by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage that deal with music, such as the Institute of Music and Dance, Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne, the Fryderyk Chopin Institute, the Adam Mickiewicz Institute as well as municipal and provincial governments.
- Supporting entities from the non-governmental sector are mainly associations and foundations, e.g. the Meakultura Foundation, the Association of Polish Musicians, the Polish Music Foundation, the Association of Independent Polish Phonography, and trade and collective management unions (eg ZAIKS, ZPAV, STOART, SAWP).
- There are also cooperation networks that most often associate with other smaller entities from the non-governmental sector, such as the Music Export Poland Foundation, the Alliance of Independent Music Producers, and the Polish Music Council.
Last update: December, 2020
Since 1950, the Institute of Industrial Design promotes effective use of design among Polish businesses and the public sector. The Institute also organises trainings for companies from different sectors, institutions and local governments. It promotes innovation and good design practices through organising exhibitions and competitions such as "Dobry Wzór" (Good Design).
Last update: December, 2020
The Programme for Tourism Development until 2020 states that tourism is an important part of the Polish economy.
The tourism economy can significantly contribute to the improvement of economic, territorial and social cohesion in Poland. The sustainable development of the high-quality tourism sector is one of the directional development priorities of the European Union. This raises the challenge of strengthening the economic and social potential conducive to the growth of the tourism sector, understood as an element of economic competitiveness of European regions. Tourism is a factor in the diversification of the economy, causing the demand for qualified staff, innovative services and modern management tools as well as research and analysis supporting sustainable economic development based on tourism. All this creates new opportunities to view the development of tourism as part of a regional policy that strengthens the competitiveness of a given territory. Unfortunately, there is still a lack of regulation and data focusing on cultural and creative tourism.