Question

Q1: What was the Basque Country's economic development strategy in the 1980s? Did it make sense?

Answer 1

RESTRUCTURING in the 1980’s– In light of the serious industrial crisis and high unemployment, both the State and Basque Governments established instruments and subsidies for the restructuring of companies and social adjustment (in addition to unemployment benefit, recycling and relocation of workers, etc.) Special aid plans for the re-launch of viable activities were also introduced.

COMPETITIVENESS AND DIVERSIFICATION: End of the 1980’s Once the worst part of the crisis was overcome and with growth brought about from European integration, policies were deployed with full intensity and diversity of lines: -Development of venture capital for the diversification of production. - Support for investment in job creation through subsidies and industrial land policy. -Priority Clusters Policy: towards competitiveness through cooperation -Fostering of total quality EFQM in the industrial sector, with the Euskalit Foundation, which has led to significant positions in Europe. --Commitment to endogenous development: support for technological and development projects in new sectors such as biotechnology. -Promotion of internationalization in the broadest sense, from initiating exports to overseas plants.

The evolution of the Basque economy has been extraordinary, but like everything in life, there is always good news and bad news. The good news is that we have become wealthy; the bad news is that we have done so by working. Jokes apart, the real truth is that convergence has been supported by employment rather than productivity, which in spite of being 10% above of EU 15 has hardly moved in relative terms in recent years, and therefore there is a long way to go especially if we look at European regions as a whole. Industry, the true driving force of the economy, because its productivity is almost 20% higher than services, maintains a balanced position in unitary labour costs, but occupies an intermediat