Catalonia to invest €1bn in five years to improve over 100 municipalities

The Catalan government plans to invest €1 billion in the 'Pla de Barris' scheme over the next five years. The program intends to help over 100 municipalities across the territory with improvement projects.

While the cabinet will invest €1 billion, authorities estimate that the overall budget will be between €1.6 and €1.7 billion, as local authorities will also fund several projects.

Sources of the government state that this year's budget has already been granted, despite being supposed to be included in next year's spending plan. 

The Catalan president, Salvador Illa, presented the measure in an event attended by around 50 mayors and local representatives on Monday in Vilanova i la Geltrú, around 40 minutes south of Barcelona.

Illa highlighted that the current world is undergoing "several and speed challenges," such as the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, and the climate emergency.

"It is important to be aware of what is going on around the world, but it is also important to keep an eye on what is going on where people live," he told attendees during the presentation event.

The president said that "the cabinet will invest the money, but it will be city councils who will decide on what to invest." 

Meanwhile, the president of the Catalan municipalities' federation, David Bote, celebrated the agreement and interest invested by the government and praised that they are "not ignoring anyone."

The vice president of the Catalan municipalities' association, Gerard Sabarich, sent a similar message, asking for the scheme to "be extended in time," regardless of who is governing.

The first edition of the Pla de Barris scheme was promoted by Socialist presidents Pasqual Maragall and José Montilla between 2004 and 2010. During that time, the cabinet invested €1.12 billion to help 140 municipalities.