EU study, widening gap between urban and rural areas
The social and economic crisis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic has widened the gap between rural and urban areas, especially in some Central and Eastern European Member States, such as Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria. This is the photograph taken from an online survey on the impact of the pandemic on the territories conducted by Eurofound in three stages (spring 2020, summer 2020, spring 2021) and illustrated in the latest issue of TerritoriALL, a magazine edited by the Espon study program, specialized in regional analyzes. In particular, it emerged that one year after the outbreak of the pandemic, the percentage of those who had difficulty making ends meet was almost 7% higher in rural areas than in urban areas.
Just a year earlier, in the spring of 2020, the difference was 5%. A trend, the researchers write, observed in most Member States, albeit to varying degrees. Financial difficulties in rural areas are a real problem: in Bulgaria, Hungary, Lithuania and Romania, 70% of people living far from major centers reported some level of difficulty making ends meet, while in Croatia, Greece and Slovakia the figure is even higher. In the same countries, the percentage of those residing in cities who indicated financial difficulties is, on the other hand, significantly lower. Respondents complained of difficulties in paying bills, rent and mortgages.
Specifically, the percentage of respondents, residing in both rural and urban areas, who are unable to pay for utilities such as electricity, water and gas, and telephone connections, has increased. At the same time, 8.10% of respondents, residing in rural areas, said they could not pay their rent or mortgage. People living in rural areas have been particularly exposed, the researchers explain, also due to lower levels of income and savings than those who live in urban centers. Consequently, the long-term impact of the pandemic on the gap between cities and countryside will strongly depend on the ability of the latter to respond to the challenges posed by the crisis and to ensure that the transition to the ‘new normal’ does not leave them behind.