Barcelona has a plan. He had it when the pandemic extended its claws and has it now also when the aspiration is to return to a normal It may not be entirely new, but it will undoubtedly be different from the one in early March. As budget negotiations continue – there may be news sooner rather than later – and the Pact for Barcelona, whose decalogue will be presented in July and in which very diverse actors share the table, the Municipal Center for the Coordination of Economic Response (Cecore) works on the roadmap on the reconstruction of Barcelona. Several key moments have been identified, although two are entrusted with takeoff, the change of cycle: Christmas and Mobile. Of course, without ignoring other events such as the Alimentaria room or one’s own Mercè.
“All the great acts of the city from now on will be associated with different actions,” says the first deputy mayor, Jaume Collboni, on a road map in permanent construction, born from the meetings that since April held the Cecore, a coordination center created in the image and likeness of the one that copes with the disasters that take place in the city, but whose emergency to beat is the economic one. An organization that wants to contribute and that at the same time is nourished by the Pact for Barcelona, which is also closely linked to the budgets that have begun to be negotiated.
Everything is communicating vessels.
In September
La Mercè is seen as a powerful injection into the city’s spirit
“We consider that Christmas can be a turning point. We will work to make it so, ”adds the first lieutenant without going into excessive detail. However, it is clear from his words that the Catalan capital may not have as many lights as Vigo, but it will once again believe in the Christmas spirit. At Christmas itself as an opportunity, as the stage in which to launch various initiatives with the private sector aimed at alleviating the economic situation.
In the entire recovery plan, another idea also weighs: that of promoting local consumption as a priority, maintaining the business fabric. And the Christmas season can be very propitious for all this. There is also no doubt that post-Covid Barcelona will campaign again: local, in the rest of Spain and internationally.
Christmas will be one of the strategic moments of the slow recovery but it is expected to reach it after having obtained some green shoots. At this point it is also considered very important to hold one of the great trade shows of the Fira, Alimentaria, which was postponed until September and in which the national market is the main one. A leading event that also represents a sector that is resisting the onslaught of the pandemic better than others.
The fair will give way to the Mercè festivities, always an injection of encouragement for the city that, surely, with the current situation it will be even more so. It works with that idea. “It will be lived intensely,” says Collboni.
The role of the fair
The call for Alimentaria in the fall is considered another key moment
After autumn and Christmas – work will continue on identifying niches for activities that can strengthen Barcelona’s economy – another key event will take place: Mobile 2021. The mobile congress, beyond what is important which is by itself for the city and its economic fabric, it is seen as a springboard to carry out other actions, including an international campaign by the city. Other local and state level will be deployed before.
Curiously, if this year, in some way, the economic crisis linked to the pandemic began to appear with the suspension of the congress, the celebration of next year’s edition is expected to symbolize the return to the starting point.
“But we are not only satisfied with recovery, but the other great objective is reinvention,” says Jaume Collboni.
In this sense, the Barcelona City Council also wants to lead the “reinvention” of certain sectors that boost growth and position the city as a leader. Technological sectors can be key, digitization, mobility, sustainability, but there is also a reindustrialization of the city.
“Work is being done from the Industrial Pact for the Metropolitan Region,” says Collboni, who also highlights the marked automobile sector as a strategic strength for Barcelona, however, these days because of the bad news coming from Japan about Nissan and the possible closure of its Barcelona plants.
Again, the idea of attracting talent, of supporting start-ups , of consolidating an entrepreneurial ecosystem, of a new technological taxation … Although to get to this point, it is considered a priority to continue weaving the future during all the previous phases through clear messages that provide security and also help relaunch the Barcelona’s international reputation.
“The city is very well positioned to reinvent itself,” says Collboni.
Ambition: not to give up anything.
That more advanced stage could begin in May 2021, for which the mayor insists, initiatives such as the Pact for Barcelona, which brings together all the political forces, but also the economic and social sectors and agents of the city, beyond universities, business schools, employers or unions. This new stage would coincide with the start of the summer season next year and growth, explains Collboni, who wants to carry out protecting work and promoting quality employment. The deputy mayor assures that, this time, he really wants to bet on the metropolitan reality by acting, for example, on mobility (arrival parking), residential (limiting gentrification) and a fairer and more sustainable city. “A Barcelona open to talent, investment and visitors”, Collboni says.
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