The Ireland Poland Business Association, ireland, poland, irish, polish, commerce, IPBA.

January 2008

2008 AGM

The Annual General Meeting of the Ireland Poland Business Association took place on Thursday, January 24th in the offices of Fáilte Ireland, Amiens Street. The meeting was attended by over 45 people consisting of Patrons, members and invited guests along with Council Members, President of the IPBA, Dr. Tadeusz Szumowski, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Ireland and our Guest Speaker, Mr. Jaroslaw Pawlowski, Undersecretary of State for the Ministry of Regional Development.

Chairman - Dr. Tony Lenehan

The Chairman, Dr Tony Lenehan, welcome everyone to the AGM and in particular, Mr. Pawlowski who had made the trip to Dublin solely to address the members. In his address, Dr. Lenehan outlined the strategy for the Association going forward, gave an overview of the activities and events which took place in 2007 along with a membership update. (copy of Chairman’s address attached). He urged members to support the Association’s activities and events in 2008, as the IPBA will only continue to grow and meet the needs of the members with their support, input and feedback. As his term of office as Chairman is coming to an end, he thanked all of the Council members for their tremendous support and commitment during his term. He wished the Chairman designate, Philip Singleton of Enterprise Ireland every success in his new role.

He proceeded to welcome the new members of the Council for 2008:

Ms. Katarzyna Mejger of A-Pol, Dublin
Mr. Jason Dowling of Whelan Dowling and Associates, Dublin
Mr. Seamus McCaffrey of Matrix Business Solutions, Omagh, Co. Tyrone

Note - Details of the complete Council may be viewed at http://www.irelandpoland.com/council.html

Download Chairmans Address (Members Only)

Guest Speaker- Mr. Jaroslaw Pawlowski

In his presentation “Direction of Regional Development Policy in Poland”, Mr. Pawlowski outlined:

The current conditions of the Polish Economy
The National Development Strategy 2007-2015
The Distribution of EU Resources and Regional Operational Programmes
Regional Policy & main features of Regional Development

He felt that Polish businesses could learn a great deal from their counterparts in Ireland, as could the Government and Industry Leaders and looked forward to a strong and mutually beneficial relationship with the Ireland Poland Business Association who will be instrumental in developing and fostering bi-lateral business partnerships.

Download Full presentation (Members Only)

President- Dr. Tadeusz Szumowski

Before addressing the meeting, Dr. Szumowski observed a minute’s silence for the families of the 19 people who lost their lives in the military transport plane crash which occurred outside Miroslowiec on January 23rd. Dr. Swumowski recalled the significance of the Polish political events which took place in 2007 namely the Presidential elections, the General Election and in particular, the tremendous turnout of young Polish voters at polling stations in Ireland, some who had waited in line for hours to ensure that they had a voice in the political future of Poland. He thanked Dr. Lenehan for his commitment and dedication to the IPBA during his term as Chairman and welcomed Chairman designate, Philip Singleton.

The evening ended with a reception hosted by Failte Ireland (Patrons of the IPBA)

AGM 2008 Photos

AGM 2007 Photos