Studia i Prace WNEiZ US

The European Union is an organization with its own budget, under which actions aiming at solving common problems of member states are financed. Thanks to budgetary resources, the Union is pursuing, among other things, an active regional development policy, the main objective of which is to reduce divergences in the development of countries and regions and thereby to increase the attractiveness of the Member States and the Community itself on the global market. This policy is implemented and financed through European Funds (EU Funds), which, through appropriate funding instruments, are relocated in individual regions of the Member States, subject to certain rules and conditions. These funds often play a leading role in shaping the development and innovation of these regions. The article deals with this issue in relation to the regions of Poland, showing the scale and effects of the use of EU Funds. The aim of the authors was to describe the role of European Funds, which they play in the process of creating development and innovation of regions in Poland. As the thesis of the article, it was assumed that these funds significantly contribute to the growth of competitiveness, raising the standard of living and the development of innovation in individual regions of Poland. The hypothesis is the assumption that the positive impact of European Funds is conditioned by proper support from regional authorities and state structures responsible for their use. The analysis to verify the adopted hypothesis was based on statistical data characterizing the studied issues as well as on the authors’ own research. The conducted research indicated that the scale of obtained EU funds in Poland is significant. It should be remembered, however, that the money obtained in this way will not automatically translate into the development of Polish regions and, consequently, faster economic growth. These goals are possible to support with the use of EU funds. However, the scale of their absorption and their destiny are determined autonomously by the authorities of individual regions. The positive impact of European Funds should therefore be supported by proper support from regional authorities and state structures responsible for their use.