Poznan rated best-run city in ranking

A gala was held on Monday by the Rzeczpospolita paper, attended by President of the European Parliament, Jerzy Buzek, who noted that “the next challenge” was not so much the full partaking of EU funds “but their effective use.”

2011 marks the last year of the main EU investment fund boost, meaning that local governments will have to tighten their belts from next year.

Municipalities are customarily divided up into three categories for the ranking, with major cities, then the so-called urban-rural municipalities (which combine towns and villages), followed by purely rural municipalities.

Areas were assessed according to various criteria, including the growth rate of property expenditure (net of EU funds) per capita in the years 2007-2010, local government debt relative to income in the years 2007-2010, growth rate of own revenues in the years 2007-2010 and the value of EU funds per capita.

Top of the rankings in the urban-rural category – for the fifth time in a row – was Mszczonow, central Poland, whilst Stepnica on the north west coast won in the rural sphere. (nh/jb)

Ranking

City Municipalities (functioning on full ‘powiat’ district status)
1. Poznan
2. Sopot
3. Leszno
4. Zielona Gora
5. Szczecin

Urban-rural Municipalities
1. Mszczonow (Mazovia)
2. Dzierzoniow (Lower Silesia)
3. Dobczyce (Malopolska)
4. Szczawnica (Malopolska)
5. Witnica (Pomerania)

Rural Municipalities
1. Stepnica (West Pomerania)
2. Zabierzow (Malopolska)
3. Swidnica (Lubusz)
4. Kobylnica (Pomerania)
5. Miedziana Gora (Swietokrzyskie)