Re is a de Es udios Andaluces (REA) | Núm. 39, eb e o (2020) | e-ISSN: 2340-2776.
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h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/ ea.2020.i39.02
The Te i o ialisa ion o Social Inclusion Policies om he Pe spec i e o
he Spanish Ru al A eas: Regional Compa a i e
Jaime Esc ibano-Piza o
jaime.esc ibano@u .es h p://o cid.o g/0000-0002-2349-9997
José Ja ie Se ano-La a
j.ja ie .se ano@u .es h p://o cid.o g/0000-0003-0349-4176
G upo de In es igación de Desa ollo Ru al –Unidad de Desa ollo Ru al y E aluación de Polí icas Públicas– UDERVAL
(Ins i u o In e uni e si a io de Desa ollo Local), Depa amen o de Geog a ía, Facul ad de Geog a ía e His o ia
Uni e sidad de Valencia. A da. Blasco Ibáñez, 28. 46010 Valencia
Diana Esme alda Vale o-López
diana. ale [email p o ec ed] h ps://o cid.o g/0000-0001-7565-770X
Cen e o Moun ain S udies. Pe h College, Uni e si y o he Highlands and Islands (Sco land).
C ie Road, Pe h, Sco land, PH1 2NX (UK)
Simón Sánchez-Mo al e al.
Jaime Esc ibano-Piza o e al.
KEYWORDS
Social Policies
Ru al A eas
Po e y
Social Exclusion
Social Inclusion
TOPIC AND OBJECTIVES
This a icle explo es how he a en ion o social exclusion and po e y in u al a eas is ma e ialised in he
plans o social inclusion in Spain.
The popula ion in u al a eas is e y ulne able o social exclusion p ocesses due o ou in e connec ed
and o e lapping dynamics ela ed o i) he limi ed job ma ke , ii) demog aphic p ocesses o depopula ion
and ageing, iii) lack (o e y limi ed) o educa ion oppo uni ies and i ) accessibili y issues o essen ial se -
ices and adequa e in as uc u es (Be olini, P., e al., 2008; CES, 2008). The eedback o hose dynamics
esul s in a icious ci cle o po e y and exclusion om which is e y di icul o escape o many u al a eas,
pa icula ly o he mos ulne able g oups (Milbou ne, P., 2010; Bock, B., e al., 2015).
We s udy he policies on social inclusion de eloped in Spain seeking o es ablish which a e he main
ac ions add essed o u al a eas. In Spain, social policies in gene al and in pa icula hose add essed o
ackle po e y, and social exclusion a e a compe ence o he cen al go e nmen and he go e nmen o he
Au onomous Communi ies (ACs).
Ou objec i es a e wo. Fi s , o analyse he social inclusion policies exis ing in he ACs in o de o es ab-
lish he a en ion paid o u al a eas. And second, o check i u al ACs ha e mo e speci ic ac ions o u al
a eas han u ban ACs.
SUMMARY OF ARTICLE: doi: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/ ea.2020.i39.02
DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/ ea.2020.i39.02
Fo ma o de ci a / Ci a ion: Esc ibano-Piza o, J., Se ano-La a, J. J. y Vale o-López, D.E. (2020). The Te i o ialisa ion o Social Inclusion Policies
om he Pe spec i e o he Spanish Ru al A eas… Re is a de Es udios Andaluces, 39, 23-44 h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/ ea.2020.i39.02
Co espondencia au o es: jaime.esc ibano@u .es (Jaime Esc ibano-Piza o).
Jaime Esc ibano-Piza o e al. / REA N. 39 (2020) 23-44
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© Edi o ial Uni e sidad de Se illa 2020 | Se illa, España| CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 | e-ISSN: 2340-2776 | doi: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/ ea.2020.i39.02
METHODS
We ocus ou analysis in he Social Inclusion Plans as hey ga he app oaches, objec i es and ac ions ad-
d essed o ackling po e y and social exclusion.
Fi s , we iden i ied and ga he ed he exis ing plans on social inclusion a na ional and AC le el. Second,
we pe o med a con en analysis on he plans in o de o iden i y he measu es explici ly add essed o u al
a eas and o ca ego ise hem depending on hei heme o ield o ac ion. Las , we compa ed he numbe ,
p opo ion and ype o measu es iden i ied ac oss u al and u ban ACs. The compa ison conside s ha
social policies in Spain a e a compe ence o he ACs which b ings he e ogenei y o he landscape. Fo his
compa ison, he ACs we e classi ied as u al o u ban using he c i e ia se by he OECD in 1994 based on he
h eshold o 150 inhabi an s / squa e kilome e (Goe lich, F. J., e al., 2016). Acco ding o hese c i e ia, he
Balea ic Islands, Cana y Islands, Basque Coun y, Mad id, Ca alonia and Valencian Communi y a e u ban.
MAIN RESULTS
The esul ing landscape o ac ions add essing social exclusion in u al a eas in no homogeneous. The ACs
we e no a he same si ua ion ega ding he de elopmen o plans o s a egies o coo dina e he e o s
add essing social exclusion a he momen in which his esea ch was done (Sep embe 2018). While he ma-
jo i y o ACs had in o ce o ecen ly inished some ype o plan o s a egy (cases o As u ias, Can ab ia and
Ca alonia), some o hem had e y ou da ed ools (La Rioja and he Cana y Islands), and o he s ne e had
e en de eloped one (Mu cia and Balea es). Among he ACs ha had an upda ed plan, Andalusia, Ca alonia
and Mad id, did no include any objec i e o measu e explici ly add essed o u al a eas.
The esul s o he compa a i e analysis deepen in he desc ip ion o his di e se si ua ion in igh ing
social exclusion. In o al, we iden i ied 117 ac ions ac oss all he 13 ACs plans analysed, bu hey we e no
e enly dis ibu ed ac oss ACs. 73.5% o he iden i ied ac ions we e se in p edominan ly u al ACs. Mo eo e ,
hal o hose measu es a e concen a ed in only wo ACs (Galicia and Cas illa y León). Thus, he e is an impo -
an deg ee o he e ogenei y also among he u al ACs. In h ee u al ACs (As u ias, Na a a and Can ab ia),
he numbe ac ions speci ically designed o u al a eas is below he na ional a e age (5.2%), while in o he
ou u al ACs (Cas illa-La Mancha, Ex emadu a, Cas illa y León and A agón) he numbe o ac ions doubles
he na ional a e age. I should be no ed ha he single ACs ha includes mo e ac ions add essed o u al
a eas is he Valencian Communi y, which is classi ied as an u ban egion. I is wo hy o highligh he e ha
he Valencian plan includes an axis dedica ed o e i o ial equi y and is designed wi h an in eg a i e and
ans e sal pe spec i e.
The u ban- u al classi ica ion o he ACs does no p ede e mine he numbe o ac ions add essing social
exclusion in u al a eas. In ela i e e ms, when looking a he p opo ion o measu es add essed o u al
a eas upon he o al o ac ions included in he plan, o he conside a ions a e ele an . On he one hand,
among u al ACs, he ela i e p opo ion o speci ic ac ions is highe as he o al numbe o ac ions ends o
be lowe : (see o example he cases o Cas illa y León, A agón, Ex emadu a, and Cas illa-La Mancha). On
he o he hand, in he wo u ban ACs ha include speci ic measu es o u al a eas (Valencian Communi y
and Basque Coun y), he ela i e ele ance o hose measu es is dilu ed (a ound 5%) due o he la ge num-
be o ac ions included in hei plans. In any case, we in e p e hese numbe s as aligned o he social in is-
ibili y o social exclusion in u al a eas ha has al eady been highligh ed by a numbe o au ho s (Commins,
P., 2004; Be olini, P., e al., 2008; Bock, B., e al., 2015; Be na d, J., e al., 2019).
The hema ic analysis o he measu es dedica ed explici ly o u al a eas e idences he p e-eminence o
aspec s ela ed o he ollowing opics: egional de elopmen , educa ion and aining, suppo o speci ic
g oups, employmen , ex ension o ICTs, ene gy po e y, housing, amily and communi y in e en ion, and
issues ela ed o he go e nance and implemen a ion o he policies (e alua ion and adminis a i e coo di-
na ion and ne wo king). Howe e , 50% o he ac ions a e ocused on only h ee opics, which indica es he
p io i ies and main lines o ac ion in social inclusion policies. Fi s , he e i o ial and socio-economic de el-
opmen and planning (18,8%) link o he idea ha sol ing social needs ha speci ic collec i es (i.e. women,
Jaime Esc ibano-Piza o e al. / REA N. 39 (2020) 23-44
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© Edi o ial Uni e sidad de Se illa 2020 | Se illa, España| CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 | e-ISSN: 2340-2776 | doi: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/ ea.2020.i39.02
young people and immig an s) migh ha e ela es o he wellbeing and quali y o li e s anda ds a ailable
in he e i o y in gene al. Second, he measu es add essed o he enhancemen o capaci ies and employ-
abili y h ough educa ion and aining (17.9%). Thi d, i is essen ial o pay speci ic a en ion o he speci ic
needs o key ulne able g oups, pa icula ly women and immig an s, bu also people wi h disabili ies, olde
people and child en (14.53%), wha equi es he acknowledge o demog aphic and socio-cul u al di e si y
in u al a eas.
CONCLUSION
Social policies should inco po a e he e i o ial pe spec i e in hei design o a leas in he implemen a ion
in o de o be e ec i e and ele an agains social exclusion in a u al a ea. Social policies in Spain speci ical-
ly add essed o u al a eas o a leas wi h some capaci y o ac o e hem acco ding o hei demands and
needs, a e an excep ion. In he analysed ACs plans, he a en ion o u al a eas appea s only a he ac ion
le el. The e a e no pa icula s a egic axis o objec i es o u al a eas.
The decen alisa ion o he social policies should mean an oppo uni y o design and o ganise he social
policy om a e i o ial app oach. Howe e , in gene al, his does no ansla e in o comple e and speci ic
a en ion on u al eali ies in he di e en ACs. The ac ha u ban ACs ba ely acknowledge ha po e y and
social exclusion in u al a eas ha e peculia i ies ha make hem di e en om he coun e pa p ocesses in
u ban a eas, cas a shadow upon he ele ance o he measu es implemen ed.
Ha ing his in o accoun is i al in a con ex in which many u al e i o ies (pa icula ly hose expe ienc-
ing depopula ion and socio-economic issues) claim o policies and measu es ha a end be e o hei
si ua ions and needs. In he case o social exclusion, i is e iden ha he exis ing policy ools al eady ha e
he capaci y o ackle hose speci ic issues. This migh be he case o he social inclusion plans, bu i would
be necessa y ha hey we e p epa ed and implemen ed wi h a e i o ial app oach.