Industrial estates are one of the fundamental elements of the metropolitan economy. A large part of the productive economy around the Catalan capital is concentrated in them, although the tertiarization of recent years has made them lose the strength they had a few decades ago. Despite this, they have a great future ahead if we stick to the study prepared by the Table for Economic Reactivation and Reindustrialization.
One of its main conclusions is the need to modernize industrial estates to diversify their uses and facilitate the flexibility and versatility of these places. In the 36 municipalities of the metropolitan area there are up to 250 polygons, among which there are some with more lowered shutters than anything else, since for a few years the service sector has concentrated most of the economic activity.
The commitment to these poles of economic activity is one of the 420 measures that are included in a document signed by the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) itself together with the CCOO unions. and UGT, and the employers Foment del Treball and Pimec. It is the final result of a working group formed in 2019 and three years later it has been presented with a document agreed by all the social and economic agents in which there are more common places than concrete solutions.
Beyond the recovery of the weight that the polygons deserve, the report draws a metropolis of the future in which the green and circular economy become a pillar of recovery after the pandemic. It also places a special emphasis on the technological transition of the metropolitan industry, highlighting the attractions of the industrial fabric of the area as an investment attractor.
In this sense, the European Next Generation funds are presented as an extraordinary opportunity to get on the train. "These are not just intentions, this plan contains very clear specifications to boost the metropolitan economy, create opportunities and improve employment", defended Montserrat Ballarín, vice president of the Social and Economic Development area of the AMB, who will send the document to the Generalitat to start joint work on an area that represents 55% of Catalonia's GDP.
One of the aspects that should help to row in that direction, according to the document presented this morning, is greater inter-administrative collaboration agreed with the different social and economic organizations of the territory. The fact that all the agents were present indicates that progress can be made in this direction, albeit extremely slowly.
