The “Dobry Czas Na Biznes” (“Good Time for Business”) Program as a Form of Support for Self-Employment in Poland. A Case Study of the Sub-Regions of the Małopolskie Province

The main goal of public intervention is to amend market imperfections. However, public agencies may also have other goals in supporting entrepreneurship and promotion of self-employment. The aim of the paper is to analyze the impact of the funding granted by the Małopolska Agency for Regional Development (Małopolska Agencja Rozwoju Regionalnego SA, MARR S.A.) dedicated to beneficiaries from the Tarnow subregion and the Krakow Metropolitan Area. The research goals were defined as follows: (1) To verify if the basic assumptions of the program are correct and to demonstrate that it is an important element motivating the professionally inactive to take up employment as sole entrepreneur. (2) To verify if the program participant structure (both applicants and beneficiaries), with subdivision into place of residence, gender, age and the labor market status, is correct. (3) To verify if the abovementioned variables (gender, age, place of residence) significantly differentiate the applicants’ chance of obtaining a grant. The results are of key importance and should be used in formulating assumptions, regulations and guidelines for subsequent program editions. Due to the demonstrated diversity of the target group in the respective regions, it should be decided whether to differentiate the criteria for participation in the project depending on the region.