While browsing social media recently, I came across a map that showed the countries with GDP per capita higher than that of Poland in 1990 and 2018. The difference was striking. While 35 years ago there were quite a few such countries not only in Europe but also in South America, Asia and Africa, in time their number has significantly decreased. In 2018, there were no longer any South American or African states highlighted on the map.

By 2025, the group has shrunk even further. According to IMF’s data, Poland’s GDP in 1990 was a mere $6,690 in current dollars. By 2024, it grew almost eight-fold to $51,6303. All that in just three decades, in one generation. And it continues. According to the European Commission’s forecast, Polish economy will be the fastest growing large economy in the European Union in 2024-2025.

How did it happen? Apart from the hard work of our citizens, two major factors – to be precise, two institutions – contributed to the economic success: North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) and the European Union. The first, which Poland joined in 1999, provided security guarantees and helped overcome decades-old division between Eastern and Western Europe. The second, which we joined five years later,........

© hindustantimes