Spain implements initiatives to combat rural depopulation

Spanish administrations, financial institutions, and social organizations are launching various initiatives to address demographic challenges and labor shortages in rural areas. These efforts aim to reverse depopulation by supporting entrepreneurship through training programs, economic awards, and social economy fairs.

In the EUROACE region, the ‘Rural Talent’ cross-border meeting was organized by the Junta de Extremadura and Fundecyt-PCTEX. This initiative, part of the Crossrural Hub Euroace project, is co-financed by over 3.2 million euros from the European Union via the Interreg Spain-Portugal program and is set to address demographic challenges until 2028.

In Castilla-La Mancha, the UGT held a regional meeting for rural women entrepreneurs in Albacete to highlight the role of female entrepreneurship in preventing depopulation. Meanwhile, in Valdefrancos, efforts to preserve local heritage include documenting the history of historic mines that once produced copper, zinc, silver, iron, and lead.