Supporting the Development of the Information Society Infrastructure in the Poorly Developed Regions of Eastern Poland. The Case of the Project “Broadband Network of Eastern Poland”

Poland and especially its poorly developed regions are facing a challenge of modernization with the aim of building modern and competitive, knowledge-based economies. The purpose behind this orientation of socio-economic development is to transform countries and regions into advanced information societies. The author of the article presents how the development of information society in Poland’s underdeveloped regions can be supported through the implementation of one particular investment project, whose role for the growth is fundamental. This is the project named "Broadband Network of Eastern Poland", which is co-financed by the EU Structural Funds. This study presents, among others, the theoretical foundations of the concept of information society, the state of information infrastructure in Poland, technical and organizational conditions of the development of broadband networks and the importance of the European Union Cohesion Policy for building information society in 2007-2013. The analyses included in the article are rooted in the Community’s, national and regional documents and strategies for economic development, as well as in statistical research undertaken by the European Commission, the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat), Poland’s Central Statistical Office (GUS), along with Polish and foreign studies related to the issues discussed in the article