The administrative map of Galicia, which brings together and demarcates its 313 municipalities – the Geometric Map of Galicia by Domingo Fontán – is approaching 200 years of use without having experienced practically any change. Despite attempts to reduce the Galician municipal plant, locally rooted culture and lack of political consensus They have been and still are obstacles which stop the vast majority of processes aimed at achieving this objective. Especially mergers between municipalities, to which the recently announced regional plan pays particular attention, which will examine, among other questions, the effectiveness of the distribution of the territory in terms of quality of life and access to public services.
The current map was approved between 1836 and 1840, during the reign of Elizabeth II. In statements made to Europa Press, Rubén Lois, professor of regional geographic analysis at USC – and one of the authors of the study behind the aforementioned Xunta plan – claims that since then, “it has been almost completely stable”, with “small” changes this mainly affected towns, which annexed other municipalities which limited them; although there were specific mergers and segregations – the latter often failing in their attempt to consolidate the new council.
Due to the historical heritage, underlines the expert, Councils “take root” as the model of administration closest to citizens in the eyes of the Galician population, which often complicates the merger process; Although there are “very rare and exceptional” cases in which it has been completed, such as those of Celanova and Acevedo do Río, in Ourense; or A Pontenova y Vilaoudriz, in Lugo.
Lois explains that “the balance has been very bad because there is a question of feeling of neighborliness for their commune, that even if it would be more logical to join forces in these communes, losing a little of this identity is very strong and this is what leads to a general rejection of mergers. AND The absence of social consensus is combined with that of politics: “Losing positions, for parties and politicians, is very difficult, and it is also a very important element,” he believes.
So, at some point, problems began to be observed, particularly in small rural communities, that they ran the risk of ending up with “very weak administrations to cope with the provision of services”; scenarios of “inframunicipalism”, summarizes Lois. Difficulties, he emphasizes, which can be “aggravated” by depopulation, a problem which profoundly affects current Galicia.
The debate around the possibility of “consolidating, regionalizing, combining or merging” is recurring and is generally promoted in times of crisis, seeking to reduce costs. “A municipality of 5,000, 8,000 or 20,000 inhabitants is much more efficient than a municipality of 1,000 or 1,500 (…), which tells us that With 50 or 60 units – in the whole of Galicia – this could be better managed,” concludes the expert.
