Research and analyses - Research and analyses completed

Universities and colleges play a crucial role in the regional development: they affect the growth of employment; raise skills of local communities, their educational aspiration as well as penchant for innovation; they create intellectual potential of the region; generate knowledge and new technologies and affect positively the cultural climate of the region.

In the process of development of the R+D sector, universities and academic environments are the key elements. In this context, universities are among the most important partners of the regional self-government. Reinforcing their capacity for development is a crucial factor of effectiveness of public activities in the area of educational and scientific policies.

Both higher education potential and R+D sector are significant in Małopolska. They affect considerably the economic processes and constitute a basic factor of the Malopolska position in the national and worldwide dimensions. In the academic year 2008/2009, there were 32 universities and colleges in Małopolska (21 in Kraków). Our region ranks second in Poland, after the Mazowieckie region, in terms of the number of students. The Małopolska universities offer education to more than 211 thousand of students in the present academic year.

Projects cofinanced by the European funds that are implemented by the universities may reinforce development processes in regions (for example education, research, innovative technologies, infrastructural investments).

During the 2004-06 perspective the Małopolska universities and colleges were not very active in implementing projects co-financed by the European programmes. The programmes for 2007-2013 are even more generous for higher education as the pool of funds grew significantly. The European funds can therefore be helpful in strengthening their potential as well as the potential of Małopolska.

The report is available in the Polish version.

Summary