Poland in numbers: New research shows fascinating changes in Polish society
How has Poland changed in recent years?
A new report by the country’s Central Statistical Office, entitled “Poland in numbers 2019” brings together key social and demographic figures, from household size to Internet use.
Women are having their children older, with the average woman now being almost 28 when she has her first child.
Almost 60 percent of Poles work in services, with around 30 percent in industry and construction and the remaining 10 percent in agriculture, slightly less than in 2010.
There are fewer unemployed people, too: 659,000 in 2018, down from 1.65 million in 2010. Over that period, the average unemployment rate in Poland has fallen from 9.6percent to just 3.8 percent, though it still varies between regions.
Almost 60 percent of Poles work in services, with around 30 percent in industry and construction and the remaining 10 percent in agriculture, slightly less than in 2010.
Polish women are having fewer children. The fertility rate, or average number of children per woman, has fallen from almost 2 in 1990 to 1.4. Women are having their children older, too: the average woman is now almost 28 when she has her first child, up from not quite 23 in 1990.
Two-person households remain the most common, accounting for one-third of them, but slightly more people are living alone now (22 percent, up from 18 percent in 2010). Bigger households are becoming less common.
In terms of culture, more Poles are going to the cinema, theatre and other mass events than in 2010.
After peaking around 2007, when many Poles moved to Britain and other countries in the EU, emigration from Poland has decreased. Meanwhile, immigration has increased, as more people from outside the EU, above all Ukrainians, move to Poland to work, drawn by the higher earnings and demand for more pairs of hands.
At the same time, the number of foreign students in Poland has increased sharply, more than tripling in the past seven years, from 21,500 in 2010/2011 to 72,700 in 2017/2018 (out of a total of almost 1.3 million students).
The number of foreign students in Poland has increased sharply, more than tripling in the past seven years, from 21,500 in 2010/2011 to 72,700 in 2017/2018 (out of a total of almost 1.3 million students).
In terms of culture, more Poles are going to the cinema, theatre and other mass events than in 2010, but slightly fewer are using libraries. They spend most of their entertainment budgets on TV subscriptions, with much smaller amounts going towards tickets to cultural institutions, magazines or books.
Poland has several thousand more hotels than in 2010, bringing the total up to over 11,000. The largest numbers of tourists staying at hotels in Poland still come from Germany or Britain, but there has been a noticeable increase in visitors from neighbouring Ukraine.
Overall, 84 percent of households in Poland have Internet access, up from 63 percent in 2010. Perhaps unsurprisingly, in households with children, it’s 99 percent.
