The Basque Government, through the Department of Welfare, Youth and Demographic Challenge, presented the results of the 'Emantzipazioa Begiratzen' research on Monday in Orduña. The objective of this study is to understand the perspective of young people in rural areas regarding emancipation and to offer institutions a basis adapted to municipal realities.
According to the research, only 31% of young people between 18 and 34 years old are emancipated, with an average emancipation age of 29.8 years. The most significant data is that 51.9% of young people wish to emancipate in the rural area where they were born, and 20.7% in a nearby rural environment or one with similar characteristics. Only 6.7% have expressed a desire to emancipate in the city.
“"The issue is not only that young people want to stay, but that there is a real opportunity with sufficient conditions for them to do so."
The study highlights that the lack of material resources for housing, employment, mobility, services, and connectivity hinders emancipation. These problems, in the words of the minister, “accumulate,” limiting individual “autonomy.” Furthermore, emotionality has also been identified as an obstacle, since if young people are not well, “they do not have options for autonomy.”
Young people have placed family at the center of support for emancipation, as 27.4% of respondents receive family assistance. Therefore, the need for public-community policies has been emphasized, which should have similar importance to the family, given that family support capacities can generate “inequalities.” Considering that the “starting conditions, costs, and opportunities” are different in rural areas, the need for political and institutional reflection has been raised, as emancipation is “necessary for the future demography of the CAV.”
