Identification of smart specialisations in Polish regions in the context of the EU's new financial perspective 2014-2020

The smart specialisation is a new EU’s concept towards the regions. It assumes upgrading of innovation and competitivess basing on endogenic potential, in particular, in already existing branches of economy. Smart specialisations should, by definition concentrate economic resources on chosen priorities. Having a smart specialisation will be a pre-condition for access to the UE’s funds in the new financial perspective 2014-2020. Smart specialisation need to be clearly defined and only then can they contribute into economic growth combined with proper management over public financial means. The necessary pre-condition is to understand the very concept and to recognize the mechanism of identification and implementation. The expected pre-conditions also include a proper legal framework and its smart implementation through able application of administrative tools. The objective of the paper is to introduce and characterise assumptions for smart specialisations and to indicate at the progress of implementation and the necessary conditions required in Polish regions. Moreover, the paper reviews and analyses major European and national documents exposing the question of smart specialisations. The empiric part deals with identification and assessment of progress in the implementation of the concept into Polish regions.