Autonomous Communities and Geography of Spain
Autonomous Communities of Spain
The State of Autonomy is the state organization that recognizes the right of self-government of the nationalities and regions that comprise it. In Spain, it was introduced by the 1978 Constitution, which established the conditions and processes to achieve autonomy (Articles 143 and 151). There are seventeen autonomous communities in the Spanish State:
- Catalonia
- Basque Country
- Galicia
- Andalusia
- Navarra
- Canary Islands
- Principality of Asturias
- Cantabria
- Aragon
- Castilla and León
- Madrid
- Extremadura
- La Rioja
- Castilla-La Mancha
- Community of Valencia
- Balearic Islands
- Murcia Region
Plus two autonomous municipalities: Ceuta and Melilla.
Councils of the Canary Islands
Councils are the organs of government, administration, and representation of each of the Canary Islands. They were established in contemporary times with the Councils Act on July 11, 1912, as a failed attempt to resolve the island dispute between the two central islands of Tenerife and Gran Canaria, in their struggle for the capital. Currently, the Councils have responsibilities in areas as diverse as Finance, Water, Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, Culture, Education, Employment, Youth, Roads, Housing, Transport, Environment, Industry, Commerce, Social Action, Health, Sports, and Tourism of the island they represent. In the Canary Islands Reform Statute of 1996, they are recognized as institutions of the Autonomous Community, which increases their skills. The President is the highest representative of the island. The rest of the insular government members are the Vice President and Directors. They are elected by universal suffrage in elections specific to this institution.
Inter-territorial Compensation Fund
Article 2 of the Spanish Constitution recognizes and guarantees the right to autonomy of nationalities and regions and solidarity among all of them. In addition, Article 158.2 states that, in order to correct economic imbalances between areas and to enforce the principle of solidarity, a Fund will be constituted with the target of compensation for investment expenditure. The resources will be distributed by the Courts General between regions. The State Budget Act specifies which Communities will be beneficiaries of the Fund based on their lesser development, i.e., those whose per capita income is less than 75 percent of the EU average [Canary Islands, Andalusia, Extremadura, Galicia …], and coincide with those covered by the European Union within the regions benefiting from Structural Funds.
Location and Geography of Spain
The Iberian Peninsula is located south of the temperate zone of the Earth, closer to Ecuador than to the polar zone. The Canary Islands, however, are in the subtropical zone, near the Tropic of Cancer, and are hot and dry, especially those closest to Africa. The territory of the Iberian Peninsula has a large area and extends far to the south. Therefore, in Andalusia, which is very close to the African continent, it is hotter than in northern Spain. Spain is located at the southern tip of Europe. The Iberian Peninsula closes the Mediterranean Sea to the western end, making it an inland sea, while acting as a bridge between Europe and Africa. Spain is part of the Mediterranean countries and, in turn, joins the European countries of the Atlantic area. To know the exact geographical location of Spain in the world, we need to know more data, such as latitude (distance to Ecuador) and longitude (distance to the zero meridian or Greenwich meridian).
Area and Climate of Spain
Spain has an approximate area of 500,000 km². If we order the world’s countries depending on their length, Spain is ranked 51st. The area of Spain is similar to that of France in Europe, Thailand and Yemen in Asia, and Morocco and Kenya in Africa. In all the climates of the world, the Iberian Peninsula is located in the temperate zone but it is closer to the tropics than to the Arctic zone. This proximity puts us in a warm temperate and dry zone. In summer, the tropical air mass dominates much of Spain, which is under the influence of the high pressure of the Azores anticyclone. Then the temperatures are high and there is very little rain. [Sometimes, as shown on the map, when the warm air over the peninsula is strong, it can produce a surface low pressure that makes the air unstable and causes storms].