Between 2005 and 2007 unemployment rates decreased in almost all the 20 districts into which the A.C. of the Basque Country is divided, except in the Rioja Alavesa and, to a lesser extent, in Bizkaia, where unemployment rates in districts such as Gran Bilbao, Arratia-Nervión and Gernika-Bermeo decreased by 3.5 percentage points. In Gipuzkoa there was a notable decrease in Donostialdea (two percentage points less) and, in Álava, in almost all the districts a gentle decrease can be seen, with the exception of Rioja Alavesa.

These figures were produced by Eustat applying model based small-area methodology to the Survey on the Population in Relation to Activity (PRA) to obtain the most important variables on the labour market in the districts of the A.C. of the Basque Country. This represents the application of an innovative methodology with regard to the classic estimation methods of official statistics.

This complex new methodology enables statistic data to be obtained for the 20 districts (groupings of municipalities), levels of aggregation lower than Provincial, to which the current design of the survey responds. In this way, the intention was to respond to the growing statistical demand for disaggregated data that has arisen in recent years for this survey from various social partners.

The unemployed population is concentrated in the districts of the capitals

The unemployed population aged 16 and over, which is to say people seeking work, are actively looking for employment and are also available for work, was estimated at 32,500 people in 2007 in the A.C. of the Basque Country. The majority were resident in Bizkaia (20,700 people), a quarter of them in Gipuzkoa (8,500 people) and, approximately, the remaining tenth in Álava (3,400 people). Thanks to the application of small-area methodology, we can see the distribution of the unemployed population in the 20 districts of the A.C. of the Basque Country.

Logically, the unemployed population was concentrated in the districts which included the capitals of the Provinces: for Álava, in the Llanada Alavesa; for Bizkaia in Gran Bilbao and for Gipuzkoa, in Donostialdea. The other districts reported a combined group of less than 1,000 unemployed, with the exception of the districts of Duranguesado and Bajo Bidasoa.

At district level, some differences were produced as regards the unemployment rate (proportion of unemployed people out of the total employed and unemployed population) in 2007, although the range was not very broad. The unemployment rates varied between those of Gran Bilbao (4.2%) or Gernika-Bermeo (4%) and those of Alto Deba (2%) or Estribaciones del Gorbea (1.9%), so that the values of the 20 districts fell within a space of just over two percentage points.

The district activity rates showed differences in 2007

As was the case with the unemployed population, the employed population of the A.C. of the Basque Country resided, logically in the aforementioned districts that included the capitals. In Gipuzkoa, this population is relatively distributed among the districts of residence; in Álava, the employed population is more concentrated, since four of the six districts of Álava have less than 5,000 employed people. Between 2005 and 2007 the employed population increased in the majority of the districts, except in Rioja Alavesa, in Alto Deba and in Goierri.

The activity rate (the total employed and unemployed population out of the total population aged 16 and over) showed differences between the Provinces and, in particular, in the districts. The lowest activity rates were those of the Montaña Alavesa (42.2%) and Encartaciones (46.6%) and the highest those of Donostialdea (59%) and Plentzia-Mungia (58%). During the period 2005-2007 twelve of the twenty districts of the A.C. of the Basque Country showed growth in the activity rate.

Table: Population aged 16 and over in relation to activity in the A.C. of the Basque Country. Activity and unemployment rate: estimations for 2007 (percentages) and increase 2007-2005 (percentage points); employed population: estimations for 2007 (thousands) and increase 2007-2005 (percentages)

Source: Eustat