In the news. Faces in the news. What the foreign press says about catalonia
WHAT HAPPENED IN JUNE
Population grows by 0.6% due to immigration
The population of Catalonia grew by 0.63% in 2017, according to the National Institute of Statistics. On January 1, 2018 Catalonia’s population was 7,488,207, some 3,823 more than a year ago, thanks in part to the number of foreign migrants, which rose by 43,000 people. The total population of Spain is now 46,659,302.
La Caixa and British Museum sign joint agreement
La Caixa Banking Foundation and the British Museum signed an agreement that will see the two institutions work together between 2020 and 2024. The agreement will see items from the collection of the UK’s national museum displayed in the CaixaForum centres in Spain. Five new projects will be exhibited in the CaixaForum centres in Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla, Zaragoza, Palma and, from 2021, in Valencia. The first exhibit, ’The human image’, is to run from 2020 to 2022.
Caprabo registers €11 million profit in 2017
The Caprabo supermarket chain ended 2017 with a profit of €11 million, compared with losses of €28 million in 2016. Company sources attributed the turnaround to restructuring in the past 12 months, and updating the distribution system to better meet consumer needs. This year the company will begin a franchise operation.
Museum displays unpublished Gaudí plans
The Montserrat Museum exhibited plans for the Montserrat abbey restoration project drawn up by Antoni Gaudí when he was a student. The plans were found behind some documents in the monastery’s archives in 2004. The papers, which were damaged, had to be restored by specialists Carme Bello and Àngels Borrell of the B2 studio.
Rise in unaccompanied migrant children
The number of unaccompanied underage migrants arriving in Catalonia grew to 1,489 last year, forcing Dgaia, which oversees care for children, to implement an emergency plan. According to Dgaia’s figures, in May alone, 171 children arrived by themselves in Catalonia, 81% more than last year, with 729 arriving so far in 2018, compared with 402 last year.
14 new courts to be opened in Catalonia
The Justice Department began opening 14 new courts in Catalonia from June 30, when the first five opened. The remaining ones will follow over the next year. The budget allocated for the new judicial bodies is €7.3 million, to cover construction, furniture, IT and staff. No new courts had been created in Catalonia since 2010 despite repeated requests to Madrid.
New Sant Antoni market receives a million visitors
Barcelona’s Sant Antoni market received a million visits in June after it reopened on May 23 following its renovation. The City Council said that the figure confirmed the “first impression of satisfaction” expressed by stallholders and locals towards the work. According to the Council, the market is receiving an average of 20,000 visitors a day on weekdays, and 35,000 a day at weekends.