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- This is another report of an independent institution, which shows that Poznań is in the forefront of Polish cities and has great potential - says Bartosz Guss, deputy mayor of Poznań. - It also confirms that the city's activities are moving in the right direction. We will continue to do everything to make Poznan residents live better and better.  "Report on Polish metropolises: Poznań" is the fourth edition of the publication showing the opportunities and challenges faced by large Polish urban centers. It was prepared by an independent consulting company PwC. The report is based on the company's own method and analyzes 7 areas - the so-called development capitals: Human and social, Quality of life, Investment attractiveness, Sources of financing, Culture and image, Technical and infrastructural as well as Institutional and democratic. According to the report, Poznań and the Poznań metropolitan area were on the podium - behind the Warsaw metropolis - in terms of the level of all analyzed capitals. From 2015, Poznań returned to the fast development path, strengthening its position among the strongest Polish metropolises. - Over the past few years the development of Poznań has clearly accelerated - says prof. Witold Orłowski, chief economic advisor to PwC, co-author of the report. - The city is growing faster than other metropolises in five of the seven areas studied. The metropolis recorded results at the average or higher level in all capitals, and the synergy of positive trends gives hope for further dynamic development. It is also worth noting that Poznań is in the top three cities in terms of GDP per capita.

Poznań has the best marks in human and social capital compared to all the analyzed metropolises. The great situation on the labor market (very low unemployment), high level of education of the population, as well as one of the highest (after Warsaw) entrepreneurship rate expressed by a large number of micro and small companies contribute to this. The high level of socio-economic development also translates into the relatively positive demographic situation of the Poznań agglomeration (especially compared to smaller cities).

In addition, PwC experts emphasize in the report the high investment attractiveness of Poznań.

- Poznań owes great notes in this respect to, among others, favorable location and access to infrastructure, as well as developed human capital and traditions of entrepreneurship - says Agata Garczyk-Wysocka, partner at PwC managing the Poznań office of the company. - The city has many start-ups and enterprises from innovative sectors of the economy, as well as large companies. However, a proportionally smaller number of technical and IT students, especially sought after by employers, may be a challenge.

A large asset of the metropolis is also the share of green space - almost 61 m2 of green areas per inhabitant, i.e. 60% more than the average in all 12 examined metropolises.

- Poznań is one of the greenest cities in Poland - emphasizes Bartosz Guss. - Well-thought-out actions influence this perception of the capital of Greater Poland. The protection of green wedges, the creation of new parks and squares and the revaluation of existing ones - these are only a part of a comprehensive strategy. A green city, where one lives well, attracts not only potential residents, but also investors. It is the care for public space and comprehensive support of companies at every stage of the investment that make Poznań one of the three most interesting business centers in the country.

Despite the large surface of green areas, Poznań, like other Polish cities, is struggling with the problem of air pollution, which is one of the major challenges of this metropolis.The data collected in the PwC report show that Poznań can boast the highest expenditure on public security (per capita), and all institutional and democratic capital deserves praise.- Poznań is distinguished by a high level of civil society activity, as well as very good contact between the city authorities and the residents, including organizing a large number of public consultations - sums up Dionizy Smoleń, director in the public sector team at PwC. - Office efficiency assessments are among the best in Poland. The areas that require development is the fight against exclusion of people with disabilities and remote ways of communication between residents and the office. Social participation plays a special role in revitalization processes that can lead to an improvement in the quality of life in the downtown districts of the city.

Poznań is one of the leading Polish metropolises in terms of development level within the framework of culture and image capital. City residents willingly participate in theater festivals and concerts, visit cinemas, but also participate in mass runs. The weaker side is, above all, the international tourist attractiveness of the city, which results in a relatively low number of foreign tourists visiting it.In the 12 cities covered by the PwC analysis (Warsaw, Kraków, Wrocław, Gdańsk, Katowice, Poznań, Bydgoszcz, Szczecin, Lublin, Białystok, Rzeszów and Łódź) 6.7 million people live, i.e. 18% of the entire population of the country, generating 32% of total GDP. On the other hand, as many as 16.1 million people, or 42% of the total population, live in metropolitan areas shaped around these cities, generating as much as 55% of Poland's total GDP. In addition, as the authors of the study emphasize, 76% of all Polish IT companies and the vast majority of companies in the field of ​​innovation and new technologies is located in the analyzed metropolitan areas. 

Reports are available at www.pwc.pl/metropolie2019

PwC is a global network of enterprises whose goal is to build social trust and respond to key challenges of the modern world. PwC operates in 157 countries. It employs over 276,000 people who provide its clients with the highest quality services in the field of business, technology, tax and legal consulting as well as auditing. In Poland, PwC has offices and branches in 8 cities, as well as the Financial Crime Unit in Gdańsk and two Shared Service Centers in Katowice and Opole. Polish PwC companies employ over 6,000 people. More information at: www.pwc.pl.