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Almost PLN 400 million for the development of Poles' digital skills
– We are starting a series of analyzes on important topics from the point of view of macroeconomics. In the first report, we treated the digital economy as a separate sector. This is a new approach. We wanted to show that modern technologies in themselves constitute value that can be converted into economic indicators. Today, the digital economy accounts for over 1/10 of GDP and 1.5 million out of 15 million employees. Compared to other countries, Poland ranks high in several key areas. According to the report, this includes, among others: digital readiness, where we are in 34th place among 134 countries. We also achieve high results in access to online bank accounts (15th place), cybersecurity (16th place), and the online shopping index (18th place). However, we also have weaknesses, including the quality, relevance and usability of government websites that provide citizens with information and participatory tools and services (52nd place). Our digital economy is also much smaller than, for example, the US, where it accounts for one quarter of GDP, says Adam Marciniak, president of VeloBank, which provides clients with innovative solutions, including those based on generative artificial intelligence.
Poland's digital economy – GDP growth and jobs
The digital economy in Poland currently accounts for 10.5% of GDP and is still growing dynamically. Although this is a significant share, we are still far behind the USA, where this indicator accounts for almost 25% of GDP. Poland must therefore continue to invest in digital technologies, innovations and infrastructure development to increase its competitiveness in the global market and come closer to the results achieved by more digitally advanced economies.
From the perspective of the labor market, we are talking not only about 1.5 million employees in the digital sphere, but also about the multiplier effect, which amounted to 2.1 – which means that every 100 jobs in the digital sector allowed an additional 110 positions of people employed in the entire economy.
The positive impact of the digital sector on socio-economic development is also visible in the case of people's incomes. The value of the multiplier was 1.7 – that is, for every PLN 1,000 earned by employees
in the digital sector, contributes to the payment of an additional PLN 700 in wages among employees of the entire economy in Poland.
VeloBank's report "How much is Poland's digital economy worth?" also shows that despite the enormous potential, we still have a lot to do. For example, only 60 percent of Polish companies used advanced digital technologies. This result is lower than the EU average, which is 70 percent. The most frequently used digital technologies by domestic companies are digital platforms (44 percent) and process automation using robotics (43 percent). Compared to the EU average, Polish companies use these technologies to a lesser extent . These are drones – 30 percent compared to the EU average of 24 percent.
New state digitalization strategy – six blocks
The conclusions of the report are also part of the ongoing discussions on the amendment of the State Digitalization Strategy. It includes six blocks: digital state; cybersecurity of administration, business and citizens; new technologies; digital competences and staff; connectivity and data. The preliminary assumptions of the Strategy include, among others, that by 2030, 80 percent inhabitants of Poland will have at least basic digital competences, compared to 44.3 percent. Today.
VeloBank's report, which analyzes the digital economy separately, may be an interesting contribution to the discussions lasting until the end of July.
– Our report is the result of a detailed analysis of macroeconomic data and an original methodology that allowed us to estimate the value of the digital sector in the Polish economy. We also compared our results with estimates from other countries to show how Poland compares to other economies. Of course, a one-to-one comparison is not possible, but it gives a detailed picture of how our country fares in terms of modern technologies. And that was what we cared about the most. We wanted to show and understand digitalization, which is becoming a key element driving economic growth around the world. Digitalization affects all sectors of the economy, bringing new investment opportunities, innovations and increased efficiency. For this reason, an accurate assessment of the value of the digital economy is necessary to shape conscious economic policy, support investments and develop Poland's competitiveness in the international arena – points out Piotr Arak, chief economist at VeloBank, author of the report.
