The pandemic halted the decline of the Spanish rural population

The decline of the Spanish rural population has plagued lawmakers and citizens for more than half a century. It wasn't until the COVID-19 pandemic that suddenly changed that. For the first time in decades, rural regions and smaller cities in Spain are seeing more people coming than they go, as restrictions on movement due to fears of the new coronavirus pandemic have created a demand for more spacious living conditions and places closer to nature. Such a demographic shift can also be seen in other advanced developed economies, such as the USA or Britain. Spain faces another challenge - to persuade people to stay after the pandemic. In a country where some regions are as sparsely populated as Lapland beyond the Arctic Circle, the government is trying to encourage people to stay in their new homes. "In some regions, profound changes are taking place, which are becoming irreversible," said Tomás García Azcárate, deputy director of the Spanish Institute for Economics, Geography and Demography in Madrid. The government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is trying to maintain this trend, which would also help it resolve long-term complaints about the neglect of rural areas. The cabinet intends to spend large sums of the 140 billion euros that Spain is to receive over the next six years from the European Recovery Fund to revive the economy after the pandemic, to improve infrastructure and opportunities in rural areas. "European funds are changing everything," said Francés Boya, secretary general of the Ministry of Ecological Transformation in Madrid, who is in charge of population policy. "They will allow us to improve indicators, such as the proportion of the rural population that is not associated with new technologies," he said. The government says it plans to set aside € 2.3 billion to ensure nationwide coverage of broadband optical internet by 2025 and € 2 billion to expand the next-generation 5G network. Another billion euros are to be spent on renovating municipal buildings in rural areas, helping to protect the natural heritage and promoting sustainable agriculture, forestry and fisheries. However, these changes will take some time. However, due to the acceleration of the vaccination campaign in Spain, some of those who have moved to the countryside are already considering returning. This puts pressure on the government to speed up its action plan. "I don't know yet if I will remain a rural woman for the rest of my life, or just another two or three years," said Loli García, a 39-year-old educator who moved from Madrid to northeastern Spain to the village of Used with 200 inhabitants last September. "What I really like about Used is nature and freedom. And time. We seem to have time to live here again," she said. If Spain were able to encourage at least some of the displaced to stay in the countryside, it would reverse the current trend of exodus in the opposite direction.