Full of eastern promise
According to the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIiIZ), by the end of 2005 Japanese companies had invested around $1 (zł.3.13) billion in Poland. That figure is likely to change soon, as this year has seen some significant new investments from Japan, including Sharp's EUR 200 (zł.795.8) million commitment to an LCD monitor production plant near Toruń and Toshiba's recent zł.135-million investment near Wrocław. "We will double the value of Japanese investments," boasted Deputy Economy Minister Andrzej Kaczmarek.
Minister Plenipotentiary in the Japanese Embassy, Ikuo Mizuki, explains that Poland's main attractions for Japanese companies are its bright economic prospects, the country's strategic position, as well as the well-educated, skilled labor force. "The human factor is most important ... it's even more important than the cost," says the general director of NSK Steering Systems Europe, Katsuyuki Kambara.
Despite the recent boom, companies from Japan still face numerous hardships when deciding to invest in Poland. Mizuki said that investors complain mainly about poor infrastructure, complicated administrative procedures and a lack of local government support. A shortage of information about investing in Poland prevents many companies from even considering coming here. "Convenient access to information - an information bureau in Tokyo - is urgently needed," Mizuki said.
Soon this wish will come true. Kaczmarek promised that within a few weeks' time, PAIiIZ's first foreign office will open in Tokyo. This is just the beginning of the agency's foreign expansion. As the Deputy Minister disclosed, up to 60 offices could be working in various locations worldwide next year. Apart from Tokyo, the first bureaus will be set up in New York and Shanghai - the venue for Expo 2010.
Kaczmarek underlined the need to draw Japanese investors to Poland as it has a very positive indirect effect on the economy. "Japanese brands are world-renowned, so their production in Poland builds the country's image as a place to do business," he said.
