The Ministry of Economy is granting loans of PLN 20,000 – 40,000 to women as support to start up and develop businesses. The ministry has allocated up to PLN 25 million to the pilot project and expects to ultimately receive up to EUR 100 million from EU funds. The resources are to be administered by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) and will be initially granted in areas where the unemployment rate is highest. This includes the West Pomeranian province and probably the Świętokrzyskie province. The ministry is currently working on a target list of provinces. The loans for women are to be granted for a maximum period of five years at a fixed rate of 2%. In the event of financial problems, loan takers can temporarily suspend loan repayments for a period of up to 12 months. However, the ministry has imposed the following conditions: business women have to contribute 5% of the total amount and the loan cannot finance registered companies only start-ups and development projects. Moreover, the ministry intends to support the business activity of women on export markets, especially with regards to countries that have administrative and cultural barriers for female entrepreneurs, for example, Arab and Asian countries. “Women should be aware that export is one of those areas that can bring long-term financial gain,” said Ilona Antoniszyn-Klik, deputy Minister of Economy. She adds that the ministry is planning a female mission to Dubai (in the third quarter of 2014) and probably to Vietnam, Japan and an African country. In 2015, the ministry intends to focus on other countries, such as Malaysia, Thailand and South America.
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