Talk:Internal territorial governance

The COVID-19 pandemic in Spain. First wave: from the first cases to the end of June 2020

Monographs from the National Atlas of Spain. New content

Thematic structure > Social, economic and environmental effects > Internal territorial governance

Spain is a liberal democratic country with a very high level of political decentralisation. This decentralisation finds expression both in higher levels –Spain joined the European Union on 12 June 1985– and internally in lower levels –Spain is a composite state, made up of the national administration, the regions and the local authorities since 1992, when the process of political decentralisation was completed–. It is a model in which institutional mechanisms must be put in place in order to make effective the combination of self-government and shared government, which are the two pillars on which this agreement or foedus is based. These mechanisms shall smooth the way for two basic principles of good territorial governance, i.e. coordination and cooperation between the different levels of administration. However, the balance that may be drawn to date shows that significant progress has been made in the area of self-government, yet only little in the area of shared government. Although Spain is one of the most decentralised states in the European Union, there is a lack of internal territorial governance.

This decentralising process has modified the geography of political power over the last decades. The regions have exclusive powers on key areas, especially those related to the welfare state. The national administration is both the holder of other powers and responsible for implementing policies for providing social and territorial cohesion.

This composite state, called ‘autonomous state’ in the Spanish Constitution from 1978, has been subject to a profound and structural stress test on the occasion of the global pandemic that has made necessary to promote institutional coordination mechanisms, such as the Conference of Presidents (meetings between the national Prime Minister and the regional First Ministers) as well as the Sector Conferences (meetings between the national Ministers and the regional Councillors on the various political subjects). Both mechanisms already existed before the pandemic, but had remained close to dormant for decades. The Royal Decree on the state of alarm, the Order of the Ministry of Health on the health guidelines for the first wave of the pandemic and the coordination of the national administration with the regions so that the Downscaling Scheme could be adapted to the needs of the different territories all included the concept of ’co-governance’ or shared government.

The graphs on Evolution in the number of Conferences of Presidents and the Evolution in number of Health Sector Conferences show the scant relevance of these mechanisms prior to the pandemic, and highlight a relevant institutional and political deficit. These mechanisms did not have for decades the prominence that would have been necessary to provide good internal governance, as evidenced by the fact that more Conferences of Presidents were held in the few months that the first wave of the pandemic lasted than since this mechanism was founded back in October 2004. Moreover, the way these mechanisms are put into action is far from desirable, they have only had muted results, and the Spanish sharp political polarisation makes difficult to forge crucial agreements. Proof of this institutional deficit is that the Conference of Presidents ceased to convene short after the end of the first wave of the pandemic, in October 2020, whilst it should have continued to operate with the frequency required by the exceptional situation of the whole pandemic. By contrast, the Health Sector Conference, the Social Service Sector Conference as well as some other sector conferences have continued to operate regularly showing good results.

Governance initiatives at different levels throughout the first year of pandemic went above and beyond the amount of Conferences held and exceeded the powers of each level of administration. At times, contradictions, shortcomings, improvidence, disagreements and even bringing debates before the Courts of justice took place, following the trend of the rest of the European Union. The emergency situation explained much of this. Nevertheless, the four levels of administration (the European Union, the national administration, the regions and the local authorities) deployed on other occasions very important measures on different fields, such as health, education, social services, economy, finance and employment, with the shared aim of saving lives, launching economy by implementing recovery and reconstruction plans, providing ample liquidity to households and companies, and meeting the demands of the most vulnerable citizens.

Some lessons have been learned so far from how the pandemic was managed: a) it has tested the ‘autonomous state’, which has emerged stronger, using the instruments of internal governance as never before. A more polycentric, more horizontal, more decentralised Spain has taken root in the collective imagination, and all levels of administration have been seen to act as such; b) there are different ways of organising the public health service in each region, as highlighted by the map on Primary healthcare areas. However, this is compatible with sending aggregated information to the national administration; c) it has served to highlight the deficit in multilevel internal governance and the shortcomings in basic pillars of the welfare state. Nevertheless, serious issues caused by COVID-19 have been solved and collective learning has taken place; d) the importance of public services as a pillar of the welfare state and a basic responsibility of the regional authorities has been perceived by the population; e) it has opened a new stage of dialogue in drafting agreements and strategic alliances between different regions to address common issues and challenges that may entail relevant political symbolism as they are promoted bearing in mind the whole country; f) the agenda for the immediate future has been made clear, i.e. Spain shall improve the funding mechanisms for the welfare state so that territorial equity is provided and welfare standards may catch up with northern and central Europe, a regularity in celebrating the Conference of Presidents and the Sector Conferences shall be introduced, and founding a national Health Office would be praiseworthy.

Co-authorship of the text in Spanish: Juan Romero González. See the list of members engaged

↑ Top

← Different spatial behaviours

Mobility →

You can download the complete publication The COVID-19 pandemic in Spain. First wave: from the first cases to the end of June 2020 in Libros Digitales del ANE site.