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Giving birth in Granada by 2025 can be lucrative.
The provincial government of Granada offered a “gift”, worth 1,000 euros, for every baby that was born this year in one of the “towns under threat.” On Wednesday, the city council announced a 200-euro “gift” for every baby born in Granada’s provincial capital by 2025. It is obvious that the idea is to reverse the trend in declining population.
The mayor of Granada, Marifrán Carazo, announced the “Living Granada Baby Bonus” as a retort to the province’s “Baby Cheque” announcement – and no, it’s not possible to get double money: the baby must be born EITHER in Granada city OR in one of the endangered villages. Adoptions are eligible for the cash bonus, just like births.
In the last few years, people have been moving out of the city to villages around Granada to take advantage of rising property values in downtown Granada. Suburban areas like Armilla and Maracena as well as the two Gabias are growing rapidly (each has over 20,000 inhabitants), but certain villages face a collapse of their population. The province has a total population of 234,000. By 2030, it is hoped to increase this to a quarter million.
Another strategy is to reduce prices. “Both purchase and rental prices have only increased under Pedro Sánchez’s government, something we are trying to address in this City Council,” said the mayoress, who added that, as a result, new apartments must be built in Granada, “especially subsidized housing.” In this regard, there are already developments underway, mainly in areas such as Albayda and La Alquería.
“Adequate urban development” could also serve to further bolster the flagship project of the government led by Marifrán Carazo: to become the European Capital of Culture in 2031. Growing “sustainably,” would demonstrate Granada’s “capacity for transformative change,” which is a fundamental part of the bid strategy.
Lobras et Juviles are the two villages identified as “at risk” for depopulation. Both are situated in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, on the way to Almería. According to the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP), no less than 50% of Spanish towns and village are in danger of extinction. In the last few years, 4,995 out of Spain’s 8125 municipalities survived with less than 1,000 residents. The majority of these towns and villages are suffering from the ageing of their population, and a lack of generational change.
During the same period, the National Institute of Statistics published a population census that showed an increase of 584,882 people in Spain between 2011-2021. This brings the country’s total to 47,4 million. Zamora, in the north of Spain, is the province with the largest population reduction. The Balearic Islands (7.5%), Madrid (4.7%), and the Canary Islands (4.6%) are the regions that have the fastest growth.
According to INE 2022 data, the two villages of Granada in question, Lobras y Juviles have had a population decline in the past ten years and have now less than 150 residents. These towns will disappear sooner than later. Lobras, which had 148 citizens in 2002, now has only 135. Juviles is experiencing a similar situation, with 134 residents. Twenty years ago the number was 161.
The Granada birth rate was 15.62 (numbers born per thousand residents in a given year) in 2022 (the latest year for which statistics were available), while the fertility rate was 1.99 (average number per woman). In the words of actuaries: “a stable population pyramid” is not guaranteed because Granada’s fertility rate (replacement fertility), which is below 2.1 children per woman, means that a stable demographic pyramid in Granada cannot be assured. Looking at the history of the birthrate in Granada we can see that the rate is lower than 2021 when it was 15,96%. It’s also lower than 2012 when it was 17,9%.
You can help Spain by having more babies.
