Poland offers businesses seats on presidential plane for foreign visits

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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

President Karol Nawrocki has launched a programme allowing Polish companies looking to expand into international markets to apply to join his foreign visits.

“Seats on the presidential plane will soon be available to Polish businesses,” Nawrocki, who is aligned with the opposition, announced in a video published on X.

“I want Polish companies, including small and medium-sized ones, to be able to establish new contacts, develop existing business relationships and successfully conquer foreign markets alongside the president.”

To launch the programme, Nawrocki’s office is already accepting applications from business representatives interested in joining the president on his trip to New York later this month to attend the United Nations General Assembly.

A one-day Polish-American Economic Summit is also planned during the visit, linked to Poland’s participation in this year’s G20 summit, which is being hosted by the United States.

When deciding which businesses to invite on the trip, the presidential chancellery says it would seek “well-established companies with the potential to grow in the US market and seeking new partners and opportunities for collaboration”

Those selected will be invited to travel on the presidential flight from Warsaw to New York and back, and will also receive local transportation. However, other costs, such as accommodation, meals and any necessary visas, will have to be paid by the businesses themselves.

Nawrocki’s office says that the new programme was launched in response to long-standing calls from businesses for presidential foreign visits to be used to promote the international expansion of Polish companies.

Opportunities to join presidential visits will be offered regularly, with details of new application rounds published on the prezydent.pl website.

In recent years, a growing number of Polish companies have expanded abroad, helped by the country’s strong economic growth over the past three decades.

Parcel delivery giant InPost, for example, has invested heavily in the United Kingdom, France and Spain, while convenience store chain Żabka now operates more than 100 outlets in Romania.

Polish mobile payments system BLIK has, meanwhile, expanded into Slovakia, while state energy group Orlen has sought to grow its presence in other European markets.

Polish companies are less likely to expand beyond Europe, but there are some exceptions. Earlier this year, Polish infrared sensor maker Vigo Photonics acquired a US rival to reduce the impact of tariffs. Some Polish firms have also been looking to expand their presence in Africa.

Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Mikołaj Bujak/KPRP

Alicja Ptak

Alicja Ptak is deputy editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland and a multimedia journalist. She has written for Clean Energy Wire and The Times, and she hosts her own podcast, The Warsaw Wire, on Poland’s economy and energy sector. She previously worked for Reuters.