Since the beginning of the full-scale war, Ukrainians in Poland have been engaged in entrepreneurial activities more often. As a result, in 2023, one in 10 sole proprietorships was opened by Ukrainians. This was reported by Rzeczpospolita, UNN reports.
Details
According to the Central Register of Business Information, before the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, in January and February 2022, Ukrainian citizens registered about 200 sole proprietorships in Poland per month. In March, the number of companies increased to almost 600. In April - to 1300, and in May and June - to 1700. In the following months, Ukrainians registered more than 2,000 companies.
As a result of the steady increase in the number of registrations, 30,325 new Ukrainian companies arrived in Poland in 2023. This is more than 67 percent more than a year earlier.
In total, in 2022-2023, Ukrainians registered 48,464 individual entrepreneurs in Poland. This means that Ukrainian companies already account for more than 10% of the businesses established during this period.
The report also notes that more than 20% of companies founded by Ukrainians in Poland operate in the construction industry. IT and services account for a few percent each, followed by trading companies.
"We are facing a huge shortage in the labor market, and Ukrainian workers and entrepreneurs are filling the gaps where there is a lack of labor: in construction, transportation, IT, and services. We need to try to keep them here, encourage them to work in our country so that they don't want to go to Germany, for example, because we simply need them," commented Lukasz Bernatowicz, president of the Business Center Club, an employers' association.