A record 186.6 billion PLN – that’s how much will be spent next year on national defence. The planned expenditures, including salaries for professional soldiers, will reach 4.7% of GDP – announced during the anniversary celebrations of the start of World War II, Prime Minister Donald Tusk. The topic of security and resilience of the Polish state after 2.5 years of an ongoing war beyond the Eastern border continues to dominate public debate. The same will be true during the Krynica Forum, a three-day socio-economic conference starting on September 18th. Representatives of politics, business and technology, as well as local government officials and scientists, will address this issue not only in a military sense, but also economically, financially and politically.
“The crucial question we want to pose in Krynica is: at what stage of the war are we and what does this mean for Poland, our region and the world,” says Paweł Musiałek, Program Director of the Krynica Forum. “We also want to draw attention to those issues rarely raised in the public debate. Therefore, in Krynica, you can expect panels on both hard security, in strictly military dimensions, and non-military aspects. The four panel paths we have prepared – namely security and resilience, self-government and society, geopolitics and geoeconomics, and development and business – well reflect this thematic range.”
The Krynica Forum – an event that attracts big names and thousands of guests from home and abroad – will take place this year from September 18th to 20th. The annual conference is a place for discussion about the most important challenges facing Poland and the whole continent. This year, a wide understanding of security will be the main subject– the conference agenda places strong emphasis on issues related to strengthening national security, societal resilience and Poland’s economic position in the context of the war that has been raging beyond the Eastern border for over two years.
“The war in Ukraine continues, moving through various phases. Unfortunately, nothing indicates that this war will end soon. We want to consider what this means for Poland and the whole region, and at the same time, show how it affects Polish business, society and what we can do to prepare for the upcoming challenges related to it,” says Paweł Musiałek.
“The aggression of Russia on Ukraine has greatly influenced what happens in small Poland in the construction market, but also in the catering industry, because many Ukrainians have returned to their country, and on the other hand, many people have come to small Poland. Our region, given that it is open and helpful, has provided very wide assistance, including financial assistance, to the citizens of Ukraine. Therefore, this geopolitical challenge, but first and foremost armed conflict in the East, is very significant for small Poland”, – says Łukasz Smółka, Marshal of the Lesser Poland Voivodeship.
The Krynica Forum Program Director notes that the war beyond the Eastern border is not the only challenge for Poland related to the geopolitical situation.
“Another important issue is the changes announced by the new head of the European Commission, which are expected in the EU in the next few years and will particularly affect our region,” Paweł Musiałek said, “Everyone is also waiting for the new President of the United States, which will be elected this fall. This election will depend a lot not only in the US but also in our region.”
In addition to security and geopolitics, the Krynica Forum 2024 agenda will also feature debates on the Green New Deal, key infrastructure projects for Poland such as CPK or the nuclear power plant, and the prospects for businesses and the situation of entrepreneurs. Among the already confirmed participants of this year’s conference are President Andrzej Duda, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, Deputy Marshal of the Sejm Krzysztof Bosak, and Minister of Funds and Regional Policy Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz. Well-known experts and journalists will also appear in Krynica.
This year’s edition of the Krynica Forum will differ from previous ones in many ways. Changes will occur in the format of the event – in cooperation with the Jagiellonian Club, the organizers have developed a new panel system, in which more emphasis is placed on quality rather than quantity. In practice, this will mean fewer debates but longer, more in-depth discussions in a larger group.
“This year’s innovation is primarily a new panel format. We decided to move away from panel mania, which involves multiplying panels and their participants, which unfortunately reduces quality. Many people who regularly participate in such conferences indicate that they are simply uninteresting, that they learn little, and that the corridors are much more interesting. We want the panels themselves to be just as interesting, and to do that, each one needs to be cut like a custom suit. That’s why we’ve carefully chosen speakers for each panel and extended their time to allow for in-depth discussion, rather than just touching on the most obvious aspects. We also want to begin all these panels with a specific, strong, preferably provocative thesis to energize and make the debate more attractive,” says Paweł Musiałek.
Krynica Forum 2024 will also take place for the first time in such a broadly open format for viewers. The goal of the organizers is to go beyond the profile of the event mainly directed to a group of experts, decision-makers, politicians and representatives of the business world. Therefore, this year’s conference will be open to the general public, for whom a special ticket offer has been prepared. The novelty in this year’s edition will also include the participation of influencers – authors of thematic podcasts and programs in social media. In this way, the Krynica Forum wants to reach the younger generation of recipients and people interested in the themes of safety and geopolitics, among others.
“Until now, such conferences were attended mainly by representatives of the administration, politicians, decision-makers plus of course business and think tanks. We decided to create an offer that would also be attractive to the average person, because we see that security issues – or wider various geopolitical topics – are beginning to go mainstream. More and more people are starting to take an interest in these issues, buying books, watching programs, a whole new segment is being created in podcasts on YouTube where we have many influencers telling international affairs in a very interesting way. We invited these people to Krynica in order to confront the world of experts and think tanks with the people who have gained popularity in recent years to bring a fresh perspective to the debate,” indicates the program director of the Krynica Forum.
“In this edition, we also invited students to participate for free, because we want this young generation to actively participate in the discussion on the development of our region”, adds Łukasz Smółka.
Lesser Poland – one of the most significant historically, economically and financially regions of the country – is the main partner of the Krynica Forum 2024.
“The Krynica Forum is like a Davos where the most important debates take place,” says the Marshal of the Voivodeship. “For Lesser Poland, it is also a great opportunity because it allows us to promote our region in economic and tourist terms. And Krynica is one such place where we have very great tourist and scenic values, so we encourage as many conference attendees as possible to return to Lesser Poland in the future.”
