The number of registered unemployed in Andalucia at the end of 2011 was 969,152, an increase of 7.21% over the 2010 figure.
Nine new Natural Monuments in Andalucia
The Junta de Andalucia has declared 5 new Natural Monuments in Málaga province and 9 in total in Andalucia.
First baby of 2012 in Andalucia
The first bay of 2012 in Andalucia was born at 00:20 at the Hospital de la Axarquía in Málaga. Martín weighed in at 3.9 kilos and the proud parents are Miguel Guirado and Yolanda Ruiz, both aged 38 years.
Rural tourism for New Year
The Sierra Nevada, Alpujarras, the Sierra de Ronda and other natural areas in Andalucia are proving to be very popular destinations for New Year with 80% hotel occupancy being reported in Granada province.
January decree to legalise illegally built homes
Barely three months before scheduled regional parliamentary elections, the president of the Junta de Andalucia, José Antonio Griñán, has announced that on Tuesday January 10th the government is expected to approve the decree that will regularise most of the illegal houses built in recent decades in the undeveloped land in the community.
Sabotage of toll roads
The conversion of many roads in Portugal to toll roads, particularly the A-23 connecting with Andalucia, continues to cause controversy on both sides of the border and there have so far been three acts of sabotage reported since the system began on December 8th.
Population increase
The population of Andalucia has grown by 0.6% during the past year to 8,424,102 registered inhabitants, that’s 53,127 more than last year. The population of Spain as a whole rose by 0.4% (169,462) in the past year to 47,191,000. Asturias, Galicia, Castilla y Leon and Aragon were the only regions to experience a population decline.
House sales in Andalucia for first nine months are down by 23%
The number of homes sold in Andalucia during the first nine months of this year fell by 23% when compared to 2010. Sales of houses were 47,502 units.
New low cost airline with flights to Melilla
Today sees the inaugural flight of a new low cost airline, Helitt Líneas Aéreas, based on the Costa del Sol and offering cheap flights to Melilla.
Dia del Flamenco
Today is now Dia del Flamenco (Flamenco Day) in Andalucia, the date coinciding with the inclusion, one year ago today, of Flamenco in the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.