{"id":19478,"date":"2014-09-10T19:51:33","date_gmt":"2014-09-10T17:51:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.w-t-w.org\/en\/?p=19478"},"modified":"2014-09-10T19:51:33","modified_gmt":"2014-09-10T17:51:33","slug":"elzbieta-bienkowska-polish-representative-on-eu-commission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.w-t-w.org\/en\/elzbieta-bienkowska-polish-representative-on-eu-commission\/","title":{"rendered":"Elzbieta Bienkowska, Polish Representative on EU Commission"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

El\u017cbieta Bie\u0144kowska has often stressed: \u201cI am not a politician. I am a technocrat.” \u00a0As minister for regional development in 2007-13, she made her reputation as an effective manager of European Union funds. But in a reshuffle on 20 November, Prime Minister Donald Tusk put her in the front line, despite her professed dislike for the limelight and party politics.<\/p>\n

Poland is favoured with the largest allocation of EU funds of any member state: Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski called it Poland\u2019s \u201cMarshall Plan.” \u00a0In February 2013, the Polish government secured \u20ac105.8 billion from the EU budget for 2014-20. \u201cWe don\u2019t accept that it is simply aid for Europe\u2019s poor. It is Europe\u2019s most important driver of growth,\u201d Bienkowska has said.<\/p>\n

Bienkowska now heads Poland\u2019s \u2018superministry\u2019, the ministry of infrastructure and development, formed from a merger of the regional development and transport ministries that was announced during the November reshuffle.<\/p>\n

Yet from the start, determination has been Bienkowska\u2019s strong point. At the age of 29, with a masters in Iranian studies from Krak\u00f3w\u2019s prestigious Jagiellonian University and two small children at home, she passed the entrance exam for Poland\u2019s National School of Public Administration (KSAP). But she was turned down by the selection committee, who doubted whether she could combine a career with family life.<\/p>\n

Over the next decade, she worked in regional administration in Katowice, her native Upper Silesia, south-western Poland, rising to head of the department responsible for managing EU funds. In 2007, she was summoned to Warsaw and offered the position of minister of regional development. It was initially meant to be a temporary position to sort out the pension system.<\/p>\n

In Warsaw, Bienkowska soon gained a reputation as an effective manager. \u00a0Outside working hours, she enjoys attending rock concerts and has been known to stay out until 2am, only to get up at 4.30am to attend an important meeting in Brussels.<\/p>\n

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1964: Born in Katowice, the capital of Poland\u2019s Silesia region.<\/p>\n

1988: Masters in Iranian Studies, Jagiellonian University, Krak\u00f3w<\/p>\n

1996: Completes studies at Poland\u2019s National School of Public Administration<\/p>\n

1996-2007: Works at regional administration in Katowice, where she became responsible for EU funds<\/p>\n

1998: MBA from Warsaw School of Economics (SGH)<\/p>\n

2007: Joins first Tusk cabinet as minister for regional development<\/p>\n

2011: Elected to Senate as an independent candidate<\/p>\n

2011: Retains regional development portfolio in second Tusk cabinet<\/p>\n

2013: Appointed deputy prime minister and head of the new ministry of infrastructure and development<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The Polish media has been quick to adopt Bie\u0144kowska. Shortly after the reshuffle, the Polish edition of Newsweek ran a cover story crowning her \u201cEl\u017cbieta I\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

At the same time, Bienkowska remains little known for a minister with such great responsibility. In a November poll, two-thirds of respondents did not recognise her \u2013 although by the following month, with her new appointment, that figure had shrunk to just below a half of respondents. The tabloid press only recently began writing about her, albeit focusing on her fondness for high heels and perfume. \u201cFor six years, she kept a low profile, managing EU funds,\u201d says Smoczynski. \u201cNow Tusk needs her at the forefront, to carry the government\u2019s investment programme fuelled by EU funds for 2014-20.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Bienkowska has big ambitions, for Poland if not on a political level. Last week (8 January) Tusk, with Bienkowska seated at his side, announced that Poland will be among the world\u2019s 20 largest economies by 2022, which would enable it to join the G20.<\/p>\n

\"Bienkowska\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  El\u017cbieta Bie\u0144kowska has often stressed: \u201cI am not a politician. I am a technocrat.” \u00a0As minister for regional development in 2007-13, she made her reputation as an effective manager of European Union funds. But in a reshuffle on 20 … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-finance"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t