The impact of the cohesion policy on the quality of life in big cities in Mazovia

Abstract

Contemporary urban policies pay great attention to improving the quality of life of the inhabitants. Such an increasing interest in the quality of life is caused by its crucial importance for the location decisions of households and businesses. In recent years, urban development has been largely financed by EU cohesion policy funds. The paper intends to identify the areas in which the quality of life of the inhabitants of large cities in Mazovia has improved thanks to the implementation of cohesion policy. The study took into account large cities in Mazovia with over 100,000 inhabitants, i.e. Warsaw, Radom and Plock. The survey is based on data collected for the research project: ‚The impact of the cohesion policy on urban development in 2007–2013’, provided by the Ministry of Development. This includes in-depth interviews with representatives of units responsible for development strategy in the cities covered by the survey and a questionnaire survey among beneficiaries of projects co-funded by EU funds. An analysis of databases of projects implemented in large cities in Mazovia, financed with the participation of EU funds, as well as a research of literature on the quality of life in cities in Mazovia were also conducted. The results indicate that the inhabitants see the most improvement in the quality of life in connection with better transport in the cities. The quality of life has increased thanks to faster and more comfortable commuting to work, which leaves more time for other activities and spending free time.

Local context of local government participation in the innovation networks: Evidence from Poland

“…According to a study carried out among LGUs in one Polish region, insufficient funds make it necessary to focus on the basic needs of residents in the first place, and innovative activity is not such a need. As a consequence, although local authorities recognized the need for pro-innovative activities, they say that these are rarely undertaken [Mackiewicz and Dąbrowska, 2012].…”