Delivering Quality Services to All in Alentejo
Preparing Regions for Demographic Change
This publication is part of the OECD workstream on Preparing Regions for Demographic Change. It elaborates a case study for the Portuguese region of Alentejo and focuses on improving the delivery of educational services taking into account the multi-level governance context. The study highlights the need to better articulate and co-ordinate the delivery of educational services among levels of government to improve access and quality. It also sheds light on the decisive role that geography plays and the importance of adopting a spatial lens to mitigate the rising inequality present in Portugal in access to education services. Alentejo is a rural region that expects to lose 30% of its population between 2020 and 2080, hence it needs to put in place forward-looking and effective policy levers to delivery sustainable education services to citizens living in rural communities.
Foreword
Across and within OECD countries, significant gaps emerge in the access and quality of education and health services. Without action, shrinking and ageing populations in many rural communities are likely to experience rising unit costs due to population decline and increasing demand with higher shares of elderly, coupled with lower digital skill-levels and lower access to teachers and medical staff. These areas also suffer gaps in access to transport networks and digital connectivity, among many others. Hastened by the COVID-19 pandemic, there is now even greater urgency to embrace digital tools and adopt forward looking and effective policy levers to ensure the delivery of effective services to citizens living in rural communities.
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