In 2021

Results of the Regional Development Composite Index for 2021 indicate that the Autonomous Region of Madeira has improved in the areas of competitiveness and environmental quality compared to 2020

In 2021, the results of the Regional Development Composite Index (RDCI) indicate an increase in territorial disparity in the competitiveness and cohesion indexes compared to 2020. These findings were released today by Statistics Portugal (INE), marking the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

Área Metropolitana de Lisboa remains the only NUTS 2 region that surpasses the national average in terms of regional development, with a global index of 106.06, slightly higher than the value observed in 2020 (105.96). In the Autonomous Region of Madeira (ARM), this index stood at 96.61, indicating an improvement compared to 2020 (95.77). Meanwhile, the Autonomous Region of the Azores (ARA) maintained an index equal to that of 2020 (89.58), the lowest among the 7 NUTS 2 regions.

The competitiveness index exhibited the greatest territorial imbalances, with Área Metropolitana de Lisboa outperforming other regions. It had the highest value in the country in 2021 (113.17) and was the sole NUTS 2 region to exceed the national average. Conversely, the Azores and the Algarve had the lowest competitiveness indexes (82.08 and 89.10, respectively). The ARM recorded a higher index (90.88) compared to 2020 (88.55). In the Autonomous Region of the Azores, this index increased to 82.08 in the same year, indicating an improvement compared to 2020 (81.32).

Regarding the cohesion index, the results also indicate a more balanced country in 2021 compared to the competitiveness index, at least at Mainland Portugal. Área Metropolitana de Lisboa (105.79) continues to surpass the national average, along with the Centro region (100.22) in terms of performance. The ARA has the lowest cohesion index in the country (82.16), slightly decreasing compared to the previous year (82.33). The ARM also has an index below the national average (88.09), lower than the value observed in the previous year (88.93).

In terms of the environmental quality index, the results show less dispersion compared to the cohesion and competitiveness indices. The ARM stands out in 2021 for presenting the best performance in this index among the 7 NUTS 2 regions (111.90), with a value higher than that observed in 2020 (110.98). It is also worth noting the result of the Autonomous Region of the Azores (105.67), which surpasses the national average despite a slight reduction compared to the previous year (106.38).

For more information, please click on:

• Press release - INE
• Time series

Back

• Prev
• Next