Polonius, you make an interesting point above.
The question is: must that eternally remain the case.
No. Poland should be using the EU money to become a second Germany in terms of industrial power.
Poland doomed to eternally being a recipient of handotus and an object of manipulation?
No. The EU structural funds are there so that Poland can build the infrastructure needed to stand on her own two feet.
massive govt training programmes teaching entrepeneurship in different fields
Good idea. It should be taught from the very beginning - from kindergarten - so that children get equipped with the skills needed. It would be a massive investment as you say, but it would pay off massively. When you consider that 7 billion złoty is spent on pensions for miners, that money could easily provide such a programme.
bringing in foreign trainers as needed
Yes, it would be a great idea to bring in German and American experts so that we can learn from their culture of small family-owned businesses that are successful. We absolutely should emulate them in this sense.
and granting stipends to train people abroad.
Unfortunately, PiS just cut those funds. We still have the Erasmus+ programme, but the other funds available to study things in more detail abroad have gone. But again, it would really benefit Poland to have a programme where talented Poles would be funded to go and study abroad on condition that they use the skills in Poland upon their return.
Farmers for instance could be encouraged throuihg training, grants and tax breaks not to sell raw produce but to pool their resources and set up processing plants
Absolutely. Look at the way that the French cooperatives work - that's pretty much identical. It involves a change of culture however, which is why it would be best to abolish KRUS for small farmers and make it clear that only belonging to a larger cooperative will allow them to pay it.