Poland's Taking a Stand Against Europe's Demographic Decline
A Polish national flag flies outside a building above shoppers on a shopping street in Poznan, Poland, on Thursday, June 11, 2015.
Bartek Sadowski/BloombergPoland is overtaking its neighbors in the race to avert the demographic downturn.
Family payments introduced by the new conservative-led government, worth 500 zloty ($128) per month for every child after the first, now put eastern Europe's biggest economy in the top ranks of European Union countries in terms of transfers as a percentage of the average wage. From 20th place in 2015, Poland now ranks fourth behind France, Hungary and Austria.
Now, a fresh study published by PwC puts the country's recent splurge on family policies into European context.
Beyond electioneering and largesse amounting to almost 40 percent of the country's planned 2017 budget deficit, there's a rationale behind such a surge in state generosity: Like many of its European neighbors, Poland's demographic outlook isn't bright.