Pozycja konkurencyjna Polski na tle krajów Grupy Wyszehradzkiej w latach 2004-2014

In the globalization context, competition has become a very important factor that affects national economy development. In addition to classic factors influencing its level, qualitative factors, such as economic stability, innovation, quality of education, quality of business environment, etc. are becoming more and more important. The Global Competitiveness Index published annually by the World Economic Forum measures the level and position of countries’ international competitiveness on the bases of 12 pillars of competitiveness, in 2014 involving up to 114 quantitative and qualitative factors. Based on the analysis of these indices outlined in the years 2004–2014 a change in the competitive position of the Visegrad Group countries was evaluated. Czech, Polish, Slovakia and Hungary entry to the EU has created opportunities for these countries to become more competitive economies. Did the mentioned countries took an advantage of this new opportunity? The author of this article attempts to answer this question.