In 2023
Results of the Regional Development Composite Index show that the Autonomous Region of Madeira improved across all components compared to 2022

The results of the 2023 Regional Development Composite Index (ISDR), released today by Statistics Portugal (INE), indicate that Grande Lisboa remains the only NUTS 2 region to exceed the national average in terms of regional development. Its overall index value (a composite of competitiveness, cohesion, and environmental quality indices) stood at 107.77, a slight decrease from 108.12 in 2022.

In the Autonomous Region of Madeira (ARM), the index reached 98.16, reflecting a marked improvement from 95.40 in 2022 — the most significant increase among the three NUTS 2 regions that enhanced their regional development performance. Meanwhile, in the Autonomous Region of the Azores (ARA), the index stood at 91.79. While this represents a marginal improvement from the 2022 value of 91.06, it remains the second lowest among all NUTS 2 regions, ahead only of the Centro region, which recorded the lowest overall index value (75.49). Among the nine NUTS 2 regions, Madeira ranked 4^th in 2023, having placed 5^th in 2022.

The competitiveness index revealed the greatest regional disparities, with Grande Lisboa standing out significantly from the remaining regions. In 2023, it not only posted the highest value in the country (116.30; 116.74 in 2022) but was also the only NUTS 2 region to exceed the national average in this dimension. By contrast, Centro (71.55) and the Autonomous Region of Azores (83.26) recorded the lowest competitiveness index scores, despite both showing improvements compared to 2022 (70.77 and 82.86, respectively). The Autonomous Region of Madeira demonstrated the most substantial improvement nationwide, with its index rising to 95.52 from 93.33 in 2022. In this domain, the Region ranked 4^th among the nine NUTS 2 regions — the same position as in 2022.

With regard to the cohesion index, results indicate that, at least in mainland Portugal, territorial balance is more evident compared to the competitiveness index. In terms of performance, Grande Lisboa (108.84) continues to be the only NUTS 2 region exceeding the national average. The Centro region recorded the lowest cohesion index in the country (77.60), a figure virtually unchanged from 2022 (77.58). The ARM also remained below the national average (92.85), though it posted a substantial improvement from the previous year (89.08). In this dimension, Madeira ranked 5^th among the NUTS 2 regions, improving from 7^th position in 2022.

Concerning the environmental quality index, the 2023 results indicate less regional dispersion compared to the cohesion and competitiveness indices. In this domain, the Azores stood out with the highest performance among the nine NUTS 2 regions, recording an index of 111.04 — slightly above the 2022 figure (110.09). The Autonomous Region of Madeira also performed notably well, with a score of 106.67. This not only placed the region above the national average and in second position in terms of performance but also reflected an improvement from 104.34 in 2022 — a change considerably greater than those observed in other regions, all of which also recorded progress in this dimension. In this index, the Region maintained its 2^nd position among the NUTS 2 regions, consistent with its 2022 ranking.

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