Last Wednesday, the EU announced that in three Spanish regions the GDP per capita is below the EU average of 75%. They are the least developed regions of Spain.
Many residents in those regions aged between 15 and 39 are moving to other areas. According to this report, these areas are at risk of losing their talent. This concerns the regions of Andalucia, Castilla-La Mancha and Extremadura.
In addition to these three regions, there are 36 areas in the EU that are at risk of losing their skilled residents. These include Latvia, Lithuania, eastern Poland, Slovakia, Greece, northern Portugal, northern France and Finland. This amounts to 13% of the EU population.
Most and least developed regions
Most areas with talent loss are in the east and south of Europe. While Andalucia, Castilla-La Mancha and Extremadura have a GDP lower than 75%, it is very striking that the regions of Aragon, Catalonia, Madrid, Navarra and the Basque Country have a GDP higher than 100% of the EU average . In Spain we find the least and the most developed areas of Europe in one country.
Further analysis needed for better governance
The EU report shows that there is a link between the quality of regional governance and effective investments. Therefore, governance in these areas needs to improve. The report also says that there may be various causes for the problems in the regions. Sometimes there is not enough specialisation available. Other times the management is not good. The innovation system may be insufficient or there may not be enough services available in the region. That is why a tailor-made analysis must be made for each region. The report further notes that areas with dissatisfied people often vote for Euro-sceptic parties.
