Given the lack of a clear definition of the rural population, very different assessments of what is happening in the Spanish rural space have emerged, even so much as since the public policies launched by the RETO DEMOGRÁFICO do not quite define the destination of Next Generation Funds, which tend to favor territories in which more initiatives are generated._x000D_
Thus, both the central administration and the regional and local administrations defend actions aimed at resolving the problems of the citizens, but without discriminating against municipalities according to their situation. For this reason, a good part of the Funds goes to peri-urban municipalities, which tend to be the most dynamic in demographic and economic terms and in terms of initiative and innovation. For this reason, the regressive and stagnant rural area is increasingly so, while it is interpreted that the set of rural areas has begun to grow, because the «rural peri-urban» municipalities have grown, that is, those with less than 2,000, or 10,000 , inhabitants of the surroundings of the cities._x000D_
The objective of this work is to make an exhaustive classification of Spanish municipalities into four categories, based on size, density and situation with respect to urban areas; and, based on this delimitation, analyze the demographic and socioeconomic dynamics of the four: 1-Urban areas; 2-Peri-urban municipalities; 3-Dynamic rural municipalities and 4-Stagnant and regressive rural municipalities._x000D_
For this purpose, we’ll use the study of the Ministry of Fomento on urban areas (ATLASAU, systematically updated) and the classifications already made by the authors based on several sources (Padron continuo, Censo de cotizantes a la Seguridad Social by municipality and 99 branches) (data from General Treasury of Social Security). An updated statistical base will be made and thematic maps will be prepared to delimit the categories of rural and urban population.
Fernando Molinero and Milagros Alario
Departamento de Geografía. Universidad de Valladolid
ID Abstract: 919