Buenos Aires … Euskal Etxeak Basque Centers
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
nº81. alea 2008 Euskadi,Euskadi, aa competitivecompetitive countrycountry THE UNIVERSITY OF COLUMBIA GAVE THE KONPONDU.NET INITIATIVE THE THUMBS UP AURKIBIDEA / SUMMARY 3 • Aurkezpena Achievements and challenges for Euskadi. José María Agirre Eskisabel. GAURKO GAIAK / CURRENT EVENTS: nº81. alea 2008 Euskadi, a competitive country 4 • Leading human development 6 • The Basque Country’s per capita income exceeds the EU-27 average by 36% 9 • In 2007 Euskadi approached full employment with an unemployment rate of just 3.1% Euskadi, a competitive country 12 • The integral Basque environmental policy, in THE UNIVERSITY OF COLUMBIA GAVE THE synch with European policy KOONPONDU.NET INITIATIVE THE THUMBS UP 14 • 66% of Basque companies are innovative, versus 54.3% in Europe 16 • The Basque Education System performs well Leonardo/Erasmus, two education schemes within the European Union n° 81. alea - 2008. urtea 20 • konpondu.net - Building peace Azaleko argazkia/ Cover photo: EUSKAL GAZTEAK MUNDUAN Mikel Arrazola 22 • Diego Ardohain and Eli Gorostegi EGILEA / AUTHOR Eusko Jaurlaritza-Kanpo Harremanetarako Idazkaritza Nagusia EUSKADITIK / Basque Government – General Foreign Affairs Secretary/Gobierno 24 • The Lehendakari participated in the demonstration Vasco-Secretaría General de Acción defending Basque institutions Exterior 25 • The Joaquín Achúcarro Foundation was set up in Dallas C/ Navarra, 2 01007 VITORIA- GASTEIZ 26 • The Basque Innovation Agency, Innobasque, has more Telephone: +34 945 01 79 00 [email protected] than 400 members ZUZENDARIA / DIRECTOR Josu Legarreta Bilbao FOREIGN AFFAIRS KOORDINAKETA ETA IDAZKETA Kazeta5 Komunikazioa 27 • Ana Agirre met 40 representatives from Basque companies working in China [email protected] 28 • The Minister for Justice, Employment and Social Security signs agreements in the ARGITARATZAILEA / PUBLISHER Dominican Republic and Chile Eusko Jaurlaritzaren Argitalpen Zerbitzu Nagusia Servicio Central de Publicaciones del EUSKAL ETXEAK Gobierno Vasco 29 • Jon and Nicolás Uriarte, awarded “Clarín” prizes for sport DISEINU ETA MAKETAZIOA / LAYOUT AND DESIGN Didart CUISINE INPRIMATZAILEA / PRINTING xxxxxxx. 31 • Restaurante Zazpirak Bat Stuffed sardines ISSN: 1579-4229 L.G./D.L.: BI-1090-01 Opening letterPresentation Basque Government Consultant JOSÉ MARÍA AGIRRE ESKISABEL for Economic-Social Affairs Achievements and challenges for Euskadi he Basque economy has not market, looking at how many health systems available for every simply caught up but has people are actively working and Basque Country resident. overtaken the current unemployment figures. Today, the This labor market evolution Taverage figures for the 27 Basque Country has 300,000 more and economic growth data states in the European Union. If workers than twelve years ago and illustrate that we have come the average wealth generated per unemployment has dropped to through our first great economic person in the European Union approximately 3% (one of the transformation, to meet European counts as 100%, the Basque lowest rates in the European Union challenges successfully. Now Country’s figures go way beyond Union). Twelve years ago the we must tackle our second great this, reaching a level of 136%. The unemployment rate was over 20%. economic transformation: Basque Country’s economy has With this economic growth and grown 4% annually for the last the current employment situation, innovation. This is our challenge twelve years making their game of men and women in the Basque for the next few years, aiming to catch-up with Europe a thing of Country have achieved a level of set a benchmark for innovation in the past. professionalism and well-being that Europe. In other words, this is the Another way of looking at the has been inconceivable up to now. Basque Country’s challenge to Basque Country’s economic This prosperity can be seen in make the major definite leap evolution is to follow the labor social services, education and towards innovation. nº81. alea 2008 GAURKO GAIAK 3 EUSKADI, HERRI LEHIAKORRA Leading human development Euskal gizartea planetako oparoenetakoa The last United Nations Development Programme’s eta garatuenetakoa da. Hala adierazten du (UNDP) report in 2004, established a global list of 177 States, ranked in order of their living conditions. Eustatek egindako ikerketa batek. The study allocates each state a Human Development Herrialdeen gizarte ongizatea neurtzeko Index (HDI) on a scale of 0 to 1, depending on life Nazio Batuek erabilitako sistema du expectancy at birth, literacy rate among over 15s, oinarri Eustaten ikerlanak. access to education and GDP per capita. he Basque Country can compete with Norway, Eustat (Basque Institute of Statistics) has been Iceland and Australia in terms of the highest calculating the Basque Country’s HDI since 2001 levels of human development in the world. using exactly the same methodology. The 2007 TEach year the United Nations produces version concludes that Basque society is one of the statistics to measure social well-being and progress most prosperous and best developed on the planet. made by almost all States on the planet, taking into With an HDI of 0.959, it stands third, behind account life expectancy at birth, adult literacy rates, Norway (0.965) and Iceland (0.960) and in front of enrolment rates at different education levels and Australia, Ireland, Sweden, Canada, Japan and GDP. United States, in that order. Norway Iceland Basque Country Australia Ireland Sweden Canada Japan United States Switzerland The Netherlands Finland Luxemburg Belgium Austria Denmark France Italy United Kingdom Spain New Zealand Argentina Chile Uruguay Cuba 4 CURRENT EVENTS nº81. alea 2008 THE BASQUE COUNTRY, A COMPETITIVE COUNTRY The UN report puts Spain in 19th traffic accidents alone, included as place with 0.938. Niger brings up Basque society is one an external cause, the reduction the rear with 0.311. stands at five months for men and of the most prosperous only two months for women. Recent Improvements and best developed on The education indicator also does well because of the high score in Since 2001, the average Eustat the planet. the over 15s literacy sub index. On index had risen from 0.940 to the other hand, if the sub index currently stand at 0.959 although combining primary, secondary and the Basque Country continues to improve all aspects post secondary education ratios is taken into measured by the HDI. account, the Basque Country falls behind other regions. The Basque Country’s strong position is, above all, down its high life expectancy at birth: the highest in As for GDP per inhabitant, always measured in terms the world, after Japan and Hong Kong. It stands on of purchasing power parity for each country, the an equal footing with Iceland at 80.9 years. Since Basque Country has risen to 30,500 euros annually, 1976, life expectancy in the Basque Country has although still a long way off the US’s 37,500 euros. increased 6.8 years for both men and women. Basque With the current exchange rate standing at 1 women born in 2005 can expect to live to 84.26 euro=1.45 US dollars, this would give 44,225 years old while men’s life expectancy stands at 77.2. dollars for the Basque Country and 54,375 for the US. In terms of public health, tumors are the major threat to life expectancy. If they could be completely Within the Basque Country, Álava has attained an eliminated, men would live four and a half years HDI of 0.971 standing out in front of the other longer and women three years. On the other hand, provinces. It registers the highest rates of life damage caused by external causes of death is expectancy, academic registration and personal slighter, reducing lives by little more than one year income. Gipuzkoa, in particular, has the highest level for men and five months for women. Just looking at of adult literacy. nº81. alea 2008 GAURKO GAIAK 5 EUSKADI, HERRI LEHIAKORRA The Basque Country’s per capita income exceeds the EU-27 average by 36% Euskal Autonomia Erkidegoko per capita errenta Espainiako batez bestekoa baino % 31 handiagoa da, eta Europakoa baino % 36 handiagoa. Horren arrazoia okupazio-tasa handia eta produktibitatea dira. GDP PER CAPITA (PPP = Purchasing Power Parity) : EVOLUTION Basque Country Spain EU-27 Basque C. Spain EU-27 6 CURRENT EVENTS nº81. alea 2008 THE BASQUE COUNTRY, A COMPETITIVE COUNTRY he Basque Country’s spectacular economic which –as has been shown- is 30% higher than in growth over the last 25 years has not been Spain, 12% higher than the EU-15, although still down to pure chance, but it is reaping the 20% behind the US. Tbenefit of a series of timely strategic decisions made by institutions, the business sector and Basque society in general. That is how the Basque Institute of Employment and productivity rate results Competitiveness describes the situation in the Basque Country Competitiveness Report stating that the The increase in Basque per capita income has been Basque population enjoys 20% higher per capita particularly vigorous and constant since 1995. With the income than Spain and 12% higher than the exception of Ireland (whose improved position is greatly European average. linked to foreign capital penetration, consequently reducing its spectacular growth significantly if the per From 1980, after the Gernika Statute was approved, capita income were to be calculated with the GNP, a series of powers was transferred to Basque instead of the GDP) and some expanding countries institutions creating the starting point for the (whose improving income levels are partly explained by comparative data appearing in this article. The starting from a much lower level), the Basque Country Basque Country began with slightly higher per capita is one of the regions included in this chart with the income than Spain, although clearly lower than the strongest income growth in this period. As a European Union (comprising 15 countries at the consequence, it is only eclipsed by Luxembourg, Ireland, time) and way below the United States.