Twenty five years ago, Poland was the first country of the former Soviet bloc to hold free parliamentary elections. Solidarity won, Tadeusz Mazowiecki became the first non-communist Prime Minister since 1945, and a 42 year old economist, Leszek Balcerowicz, became Finance Minister.

During his tenure, he liberalized the prices of most consumer goods and initiated sound fiscal and monetary measures designed to balance the budget and end hyperinflation.

This so called “shock therapy” not only transformed Poland, but also influenced the sweeping reforms in Central and Eastern Europe that ultimately paved the way for the successive enlargements of the European Union. On 24 November Professor Balcerowicz visited the EIB, where he discussed the necessary conditions for a successful transition from a socialist economy to a market economy.