Country profile - Distinguishing factors (Spain)

SOER 2010 Country profile (Deprecated)

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SOER Country profile from Spain

Published: 26 Nov 2010 Modified: 11 May 2020

Geography and extension. The greatest part of Spanish national territory is located in the Iberian Peninsula, at the South-Western end of Europe. It includes, besides, two archipelagos: the Canary and the Balearic Islands, other smaller islands and the cities of Ceuta and Melilla. The country’s peninsular section covers an area of 493,514 square kilometres, whereas that of the islands amounts to 12,484 square kilometres. The whole area (506,030 square kilometres) makes Spain one of the 50 largest countries in the world and the second largest in the EU-27, next to France. Spain is under the influence of two bodies of water: the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, linked by the Straits of Gibraltar. The length of the coastline can reach 10,099 kilometres, if the mouths of the rivers, up to the point where tides make themselves felt, are to be included; the total area of the waters over which Spain claims to exercise territorial or jurisdiction rights, is estimated to be in the region of between 900,000 and 1,000,000 Square kilometres. The orography is characterized by a high average altitude, for 57.7% of the territory rises more than 600 metres above sea level, which gives Spain second place among the highest countries in Europe. The arrangement of the mountain ranges, following a Wets-East general direction, with the exception of the “Sistema Ibérico” and the “Cordilleras Costeras de Cataluña”, exerts a major influence on the climate, creating, as it actually does, natural barriers preventing the wet air masses coming from the Atlantic Ocean from pushing in. The hydrological regime depends, in the main, on the precipitation pattern, abundant in autumn and in springtime, and scarce or non-existent during summertime. The hydrographic network is modified by a system of hydraulic works that regulate the river flows with a view to utilizing them, for human consumption, electricity generation and agricultural purposes.

Climate

Spain has a very wide variety of climatic conditions including the following types: oceanic, continental and Mediterranean. There exist, in addition, other climatic regions smaller in size but highly interesting nonetheless: Mediterranean mountain climate, cold steppe climate, hot steppe climate and subtropical climate. As regards temperatures, differences are huge between the inland and the periphery. In the former, the continentality factor being active, winters are cold, with average temperatures ranging from 0º to 3º C in the month of January, in contrast to hot summers with an average temperature of 24º C during the months of July and August. Conversely, the latter, especially in the Mediterranean coast, enjoys mild winters, the average temperature for January being 10º C, and standing at between 16 and 18º C for the year as a whole. Likewise, rainfall varies tremendously: the North and the North-West, being under the direct influence of the Atlantic Ocean, are remarkably wet and do not have a clearly dry season: it is called “Wet Spain”, with yearly rainfall levels above 600 mm and even reaching 2,000 mm. The rest of the Spanish territory is predominantly dry, with yearly rainfall levels below 600 mm, even though it includes some exceptionally wet areas. Semiarid Spain stretches throughout the South-East, rainfall levels standing at less that 300 mm per year, which creates a semi-desertic landscape.

Flora, fauna and protected natural areas

Spain’s huge climatic and lithological heterogeneity has helped to create a highly compartmentalized territory, which, in turn, has brought about a large variety of vegetation landscapes, from forests similar to those of Atlantic Europe up to and including sub-desertic steppe-lands and subtropical plant formations. Nowadays, the vegetation landscape of Spain has the appearance of a mosaic in which natural woodland, brushwood and herbaceous formations, along with farming and reforestation areas, are unevenly distributed throughout the territory. The vast variety of landscapes finds its main expression in a rich flora, consisting of about 26,500 taxa, 8,000 of which belong to vascular plants. Concerning the fauna, the existence is estimated of between 50,000 and 60,000 species; seven hundred and seventy of which are vertebrates (not including sea-water fishes) and the remainder, invertebrates. In either case, they amount to more than 50% of the total number of species of each group existing in the European Union. Spain has a large number of examples of endemism, especially in the Canary Islands. Out of the 6,893 animal species living in the said islands, 44% are endemic.

As far as biodiversity protection is concerned, attention must be drawn to the important effort made by Spain. In the year 2009, 27.65% of the whole of Spanish territory was under protection, either by having been declared Protected Natural Areas PNA or through its inclusion in the Natura 2000 Network. The number of PNA is 1,519, encompassing a total area (terrestrial as well as maritime) of 6,174,788 hectares. The Sites of Community Importance (SCI), both on land and on the sea, amount to 1,435, while the number of Bird Special Protection Areas (BSPA) stands at 594. In this regard, the great importance must be highlighted of numerous Spanish spots for bird migration between Africa and Europe. Such an effort for the protection of biodiversity has been acknowledged by the UNESCO MAB programme, since Spain is the third country in the world (after theUnited States and the Russian Federation) in terms of numbers of Biosphere Reserves.

Wild endangered species are more and more, and better and better, protected: species such as the brown bear, the Iberian lynx, the European mink, the capercaillie, the bearded vulture, the Spanish imperial eagle and other, are examples of emblematic vertebrates put under special protection with encouraging results as regards their preservation. Sea fauna, on the other hand, is rich and varied both in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. In 2007, a detailed account was made of 608 vertebrate taxa (107 of which are mammals) which are deemed to be under different degrees of threat (vulnerable, at risk or in critical danger).

Administrative structure

The Kingdom of Spain is a constitutional monarchy with a Parliament (Cortes Generales) consisting of two houses: the Congress of Deputies and the Senate. The basic law of the land is the 1978 Constitution, which enshrines the right to self-government of the regions and nationalities that make up the Spanish nation. Spain consists of 17 Autonomous Communities and 2 Autonomous Cities, Ceuta and Melilla, situated in the North of Africa. The system currently in force has been the result of an in-depth territorial, political and administrative reorganization of the State, which has turned Spain into one of the most decentralized countries in Europe. As laid down in the Constitution, political parties are the expression of pluralism as well as a fundamental instrument for consolidating civil rights and democracy.

From an administrative standpoint there are three levels: the Central Government, whose responsibilities reach the whole of the national territory; the Autonomic Government, the scope of whose responsibilities is limited to the territory of the individual Autonomous Community, and, finally, the Local Government, made up of the Town Councils in the municipalities; the Provincial Councils in the provinces, and the Inter-Island and Island Councils in the Canary and the Balearic Islands, respectively.

Government and political transition

In 1975, Spain went from dictatorship to democracy, when Prince Juan Carlos of Bourbon became King Juan Carlos I of Spain and assumed the role of Head of State. The Spanish transition was a model of its kind, the 1978 Constitution becoming a basic tool for the evolution of the country. The Spanish Constitution did recognize and guaranteed the right to self-government of the regions and nationalities that make up the Spanish nation, as well as the solidarity towards each other. As a result of the territorial organization of the state, the political and administrative power was redistributed among national and autonomic bodies.

Each Autonomous Community has its own Statute of Autonomy. It is the Community’s basic institutional law and it regulates essential aspects such as the organization and operation of its Autonomic Parliament and Government, the responsibilities assumed, their administration, its singularity features and its differentiating traits, such as the language or the civil law, and its relations with the State. Such a distribution of responsibilities is based on the distinction among those responsibilities being exclusive to the State or the Autonomous Communities; those being shared between the State and the Autonomous Communities, and the concurrent responsibilities, concerning which action by the State as well as by the Autonomous Communities is possible. The conflicts of jurisdiction are settled by the Constitutional Court.

The Autonomous Communities are ruled according to a parliamentary system, their basic institutions being the Parliament, the President of the Community and the Autonomic Government. From a financial and economic standpoint, the Autonomous Communities enjoy a great autonomy in matters pertaining to management, with legal capacity to prepare and pass their own annual budgets, and to establish their own financial resources by means of taxes, rates and surcharges. The general financing system of the Autonomous Communities, which includes, besides, taxes assigned by the State and a share in State taxes, is multilaterally set by the State and the Autonomous Communities.

The Spaniards do participate in politics by the agency of their representatives, who are elected by equal, free, direct, secret and universal ballot in four types of elections: legislative, autonomic, local and European. The purpose of the legislative elections is that of choosing the members of the “Cortes Generales”, using different voting systems for the Congress (proportional adjusted system) and the Senate (majority system with open electoral lists, each voter being able to cast his/her ballot for up to three candidates belonging to different political parties)

Economic structure

Spain’s production structure has undergone substantial changes over the last few decades, evolving towards services and industry to the detriment of primary industry. This process has followed the guidelines common to developed countries, becoming more intensified after accession to the EU (1986). From that year onwards, commercial relations with foreign countries became more open; the industry underwent a greater degree of development, specialization and efficiency; exports increased and the country consolidated itself as a tourist destination. Likewise, a growing development of the construction and related industries did come about. Funds provided by the EU were a decisive driving force for this economic development, by contributing to the building of a communications network (roads and high- speed trains).

Spanish economy experienced a sharp contraction in 2009, with a GDP drop (at constant prices) of 3.6%, which represents the biggest downturn in decades. In 2008 the GDP grew only 0.9%, while between 2003 and 2007, that rate was between 3% and 4% (at constant prices) and have placed Spain on the way to a clear convergence with EU countries.

In parallel to the increase of the GDP, a redistribution of income has taken place along with an expansion of social services rendered by Government Bodies, especially in the fields of health care and education, although the investment in R&D&I is still insufficient in spite of the effort made over the last few years to bring the country closer to European levels. In 2009, the GDP reached 1,051,151 million euros (first estimation) and the income per capita (at market prices) was 22,886 € (slightly lower than in 2008).

Based on first preliminary Eurostat estimations for 2009, GDP per inhabitant in Spain, expressed in purchasing power parity, was above the EU average (Spain = 103, EU-27 = 100) and ranked the 12th position among the 27 EU states..

Another process that must be highlighted in order to enable the Spanish economy to be put on a level with that of the European Community as a whole is the implementation of the CAP, which has had a strong impact on the farming and livestock breeding industries and provided a major boost for the agrifoodstuffs sector. Of no lesser importance has been the introduction of the Euro as a single currency, thanks to which economic relations with the EU countries have become smoother, even though it has brought in an inflation factor. Interrelation among all these factors has made it possible to create a large supply of jobs, which has helped to reduce the traditionally high unemployment rates, opening the country to immigration flows from abroad with a view to fill vacancies in the farming, building and service sectors, especially in the catering industry.

The cyclical fluctuations of the economy (expansion, recession) have been less pronounced in the Spanish case since accession to the EU; but since 2008 the world financial crisis is having a negative impact, especially on industries such as building and car-making, and, as a result, on the unemployment rate, all of which is compounded by the traditional energy deficit of our economy, heavily dependent on oil imports in spite of the strong boost given to alternative energies, especially in the field of wind power.

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