The East Brandenburg and Cottbus Chambers of Industry and Commerce want to support their member companies even more effectively in opening up markets in Poland and join forces to do so.
A corresponding agreement was signed by Monique Zweig, Managing Director of IHK Ostbrandenburg, and André Fritsche, Managing Director of IHK Cottbus, on 15 April 2026 in Gubin as part of a joint meeting of the foreign trade committees of both chambers.
"Poland is now a key economic partner for Brandenburg. Nevertheless, there are still many obstacles, from tax law to transport bottlenecks. This is where we want to start and utilise synergies from our work to further improve the framework conditions on the cross-border market for our member companies," says Monique Zweig.
André Fritsche adds: "We want to use our cooperation to promote regional development, strengthen entrepreneurial interests and bring the European idea to life. This is all to the benefit of the economy and society on both sides of the border, as further integration with Poland offers our region enormous economic potential."
In concrete terms, the agreement covers points such as cooperation with Polish chambers of commerce and business development organisations or collaboration on networks, trade fairs and business trips in order to strengthen direct economic relations. Other points include economic policy cooperation with political decision-makers and intensive coordination on specialist topics such as infrastructure, energy, education and skilled workers.
Background: With annual growth of around three per cent, Poland is one of Europe's economic up-and-comers. In 2004, when the country joined the EU, it was not even in the top 10 of Germany's most important trading partners.
In 2025, Germany exported goods worth 99.9 billion euros to its neighbouring country, according to figures from the Federal Statistical Office. This means that Poland is currently Germany's fourth-largest export market and has been Brandenburg's undisputed number one trading partner for years.
Last year, the volume of trade between Brandenburg and Poland reached a new high of 8.6 billion euros. Brandenburg's most important exports to Poland are coking plant and petroleum products, metals, food and animal feed as well as chemical products. The most important import products from Poland are electrical equipment, motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts and chemical products.