Shortcomings and resources in the Northern Basque Country
The analysis of the social, economic and demographic situation of the Northern Basque Country is dominated by prejudices and perceptions, as there is often no reliable statistics. For this reason, it is advisable to carry out a careful study full of nuances. Some trends are known, such as the depopulation of the interior and the concentration of the population on the North Coast and the interior of Lapurdi, the importance of tourism and the weakness of the industry, the predominance and increase of precariousness of middle jobs, real estate speculation and the prosperous place of second homes. Other trends are common with the Southern Basque Country, such as the ageing of the population, the feminization of the labour market, the rise in the rate of nationalities after a fall or the high rate of unemployment suffered by young people.
But to understand the peculiarities of the Northern Basque Country, it is necessary to keep in mind several components: (1) does not have a political-administrative character except for the popular character recognized by the Voynet Law (1997), which means that it does not have its own competence and budget for the formation and execution of public policies decided by it, (2) it does not have a special university apart from the University of Pau, preventing the creation and rooting of qualified jobs, (3) it has historically positioned itself far from the centers of economic development, hindering the development of an industry, or (4) it has participated in a centralized state where public administration is very uniform and where policies are carried out in a cohesive way. At the same time, in addition to being in a border situation, it is well connected with other territories and offers a generous quality of life. These phenomena have conditioned the evolution of this territory.
In general, the Northern Basque Country is an attractive territory, with an increase of 61,407 inhabitants from 1968 to 2006, with an overall figure of 280,044 people. The population is projected to reach 317,000 by 2020. It is true that this development mainly benefits the coast and the intermediate zone, since the population of the former has increased 1.3 times and that of the latter by 1.8 times. The population growth in the Lapurdi area is mainly due to an increase in the price of housing, since prices in this area are more affordable than in the coastal area. This additional population comes mainly from abroad, taking into account that in recent decades the migratory balance has increased at the same time as the natural balance has decreased. Unlike what happened 40 years ago, there are more deaths today than there are deaths. Likewise, if people from abroad are of a certain age, as in the whole of France, 31.7% of the population of the Northern Basque Country is under 30 years old. This shows that the rate of natality is quite high, due to the natalist policies that have been developed in recent decades.
On the other hand, the number of people with higher education is lower than that of the Southern Basque Country, both for women and men, although some 8,000 students have to go abroad to continue their studies at the University. This situation is linked, among other things, to the characteristics of the labour market. In fact, lower and middle level jobs dominate, with middle, employed and employed occupations accounting for 77.1 per cent of the active population, compared with 10.2 per cent for the upper and middle level intellectual occupations. On the contrary, the distribution of the active population differs according to the provinces and some age classes and groups suffer more from unemployment than others, as in the case of young people and foreigners. In fact, in 2008, the unemployment rate for foreigners is higher than the full one (14.1 per cent), when it reaches 19.4 per cent for foreign wives.
In addition, more than half of the companies have been created in the services sector, followed by the real estate and construction sectors, and the lowest creation rate is in the industrial sector. The industry in the Northern Basque Country is mainly based on the agro-food industry and intermediate goods, and only accounts for 17.9% of the workers, which is half the rate in the Basque Country. Most companies are small, with 92.5% employing fewer than 10 employees and only 1.2% of companies employing more than 50 employees. The construction sector has a particular strength, as the number of houses that have been built has steadily increased from 1968 to the present. In fact, it has multiplied twice in 40 years; the number of vacant homes has increased by 1.2 times and the number of second-hand homes has increased by 3.6 times. The coast is dominated by apartments, while the interior and intermediate areas are dominated by more houses.
So if the North has shortcomings, but then the resources to complete the prosperity also.
But to understand the peculiarities of the Northern Basque Country, it is necessary to keep in mind several components: (1) does not have a political-administrative character except for the popular character recognized by the Voynet Law (1997), which means that it does not have its own competence and budget for the formation and execution of public policies decided by it, (2) it does not have a special university apart from the University of Pau, preventing the creation and rooting of qualified jobs, (3) it has historically positioned itself far from the centers of economic development, hindering the development of an industry, or (4) it has participated in a centralized state where public administration is very uniform and where policies are carried out in a cohesive way. At the same time, in addition to being in a border situation, it is well connected with other territories and offers a generous quality of life. These phenomena have conditioned the evolution of this territory.
In general, the Northern Basque Country is an attractive territory, with an increase of 61,407 inhabitants from 1968 to 2006, with an overall figure of 280,044 people. The population is projected to reach 317,000 by 2020. It is true that this development mainly benefits the coast and the intermediate zone, since the population of the former has increased 1.3 times and that of the latter by 1.8 times. The population growth in the Lapurdi area is mainly due to an increase in the price of housing, since prices in this area are more affordable than in the coastal area. This additional population comes mainly from abroad, taking into account that in recent decades the migratory balance has increased at the same time as the natural balance has decreased. Unlike what happened 40 years ago, there are more deaths today than there are deaths. Likewise, if people from abroad are of a certain age, as in the whole of France, 31.7% of the population of the Northern Basque Country is under 30 years old. This shows that the rate of natality is quite high, due to the natalist policies that have been developed in recent decades.
On the other hand, the number of people with higher education is lower than that of the Southern Basque Country, both for women and men, although some 8,000 students have to go abroad to continue their studies at the University. This situation is linked, among other things, to the characteristics of the labour market. In fact, lower and middle level jobs dominate, with middle, employed and employed occupations accounting for 77.1 per cent of the active population, compared with 10.2 per cent for the upper and middle level intellectual occupations. On the contrary, the distribution of the active population differs according to the provinces and some age classes and groups suffer more from unemployment than others, as in the case of young people and foreigners. In fact, in 2008, the unemployment rate for foreigners is higher than the full one (14.1 per cent), when it reaches 19.4 per cent for foreign wives.
In addition, more than half of the companies have been created in the services sector, followed by the real estate and construction sectors, and the lowest creation rate is in the industrial sector. The industry in the Northern Basque Country is mainly based on the agro-food industry and intermediate goods, and only accounts for 17.9% of the workers, which is half the rate in the Basque Country. Most companies are small, with 92.5% employing fewer than 10 employees and only 1.2% of companies employing more than 50 employees. The construction sector has a particular strength, as the number of houses that have been built has steadily increased from 1968 to the present. In fact, it has multiplied twice in 40 years; the number of vacant homes has increased by 1.2 times and the number of second-hand homes has increased by 3.6 times. The coast is dominated by apartments, while the interior and intermediate areas are dominated by more houses.
So if the North has shortcomings, but then the resources to complete the prosperity also.