Plan Galicia
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Plan Galicia was an economic recovery plan of the Spanish government that took place in Galicia after the Prestige oil spill. It was adopted by the Spanish Council of Ministers on January 23, 2003, in an attempt to mitigate the consequences of the Prestige disaster. Plan Galicia was presented as complementary to the one approved days before by the Xunta de Galicia.
The budgeted amount, 12,459 million euros, represented almost twice the annual budget of the Xunta de Galicia (also twice the state investment in Expo'92 in Seville and ten times more than the Barcelona Olympics[1]).
The Galicia Plan was presented as complementary to the one approved days before by the Xunta, for a value of 1,663 million euros.
In order to recover the Galician economy after the heavy blow that the oil spill caused both in the economic sectors directly related to the sea (fishing and seafood) and in those indirectly related but which were also damaged after the catastrophe, the government of Aznar held in A Coruña a Council extraordinary meeting of Ministers where an ambitious set of aid was approved and the launch of different initiatives aimed at overcoming the environmental, social and economic consequences derived from the Prestige. The different measures approved included direct aid to the sectors affected by the cessation of activity.
Its objectives were:
- Environmental regeneration of the affected areas.
- Promote rebalancing and territorial cohesion through new infrastructures that serve to enhance the economic development of Galicia.
- Boost productive investment in Galicia.
- Sectoral diversification of economic activity, promoting the development of new sectors.
- Enhance the image of Galicia.
It was structured in 13 sectors and included different actions, among which we can cite:
- 1,000 million for the regeneration of the coast (500 for actions at sea,[2] 350 for the regeneration of the coast, 75 for the National Park of the Atlantic Islands and another 75 for other projects).
- 676 million for internal motorways (Pontevedra-A Cañiza and Chantada-Monforte).
- 2,946 million for new high-speed train lines (Ferrol-Bilbao Cantabrian railway corridor, Ponferrada-Monforte connection and the Lugo-A Coruña section).
- Outer port of A Coruña.
- Line of soft loans ICO (Official Credit Institute) at zero or low interest, to repair or replace damaged facilities or to finance new investments.
- Regional incentive programs and rural development.
- Start-up of new parks and industrial estates in the affected areas.
- Construction of an oceanographic research vessel.
- It helps research programs in the field of prevention and fight against marine pollution.
- Facilitate access to the Internet in schools, libraries and rural areas.
- Increase aid to education (pre- and post-doctoral scholarships) and to universities for training and research and material and infrastructure related to environmental research.
- National and international promotion campaign for the image of Galician products, particularly those related to the sea.
- Fiscal aid for the economic activities developed in the affected areas.
- Plan of excellence and revitalization in the affected areas ( Costa da Morte, O Salnés and Ribadeo ), including a Parador on the Costa da Morte. Development of national and international promotion campaigns for Galicia as a tourist destination.
- Priority to Galicia for the organization of congresses and public events organized by the Administration during 2003.
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