The CREA Project analyses the growth potential of Andalusia with the collaboration of more than 100 companies

The first results are expected to be presented before the end of the year with a view to designing a roadmap to boost the autonomous community.

The CREA Project (Economic Growth and Employment in Andalusia), promoted by Unicaja and the Andalusian Government in collaboration with the Growth Lab of Harvard University and the consulting firm Oliver Wyman, has promoted the creation of a working group focused specifically on green growth.

Under this collaboration, a round table was organised, which was opened by Isidro Rubiales, CEO of Unicaja, and closed by the Minister of Employment, Business and Self-Employment of the Andalusian Government, Rocío Blanco. The event was attended by almost a hundred representatives from the business and institutional world.

During her speech, the Minister stressed that investing in ‘green growth’ is an “environmental imperative” and that moving towards a sustainable economy is an extraordinary opportunity to promote innovation and the development of new business models. She also defended Andalusia’s leading position in this framework, “due to its wide availability of renewable energy sources, a solid industrial base and a proactive administration”, before assuring that the CREA Project “will promote the development of this land” and will serve to build a “better Andalusia for future generations.”

For his part, Isidro Rubiales pointed out that “Andalusia is a fertile field for the implementation of direct initiatives linked to the green economy, with enormous export potential if accompanied by the development of the necessary infrastructures.” He added that “the CREA Project seeks to identify the capacities of the Andalusian autonomous community to exploit its potential and improve its competitive position.”

The debate, moderated by María José (Pepa) Chiarri, Sustainability and Climate Partner for Spain and Portugal at Oliver Wyman, was attended by Olivia Pilar Infantes, Regulatory Affairs & Subsidies Director at CEPSA; Francisco Leal, founding partner of Ly Company; Marcos Martín, CEO of Hidralia; Rafael Sánchez, General Manager for Andalusia, Extremadura, Ceuta and Melilla at Endesa; and Ricardo Hausmann, Director of Harvard’s Growth Lab, who previously gave a presentation on green growth strategies.

Among the topics discussed at the table, renewable energy, green hydrogen, the circular economy, water management, technology exports and decarbonisation stood out.

According to Pepa Chiarri, “Sustainable growth is essential to building a resilient and prosperous future. By adopting responsible practices, we not only protect the environment, but also boost the local economy. With its wealth of natural resources and its commitment to renewable energy, Andalusia has enormous potential for growth.”

For his part, Ricardo Hausmann has highlighted that “a world that seeks to decarbonise will need specific goods and services, and Andalusia can become a key supplier, which will mean that, the more the world wants to decarbonise, the greater will be the exports, growth and job creation in Andalusia.”

The CREA Project, presented last July, is an innovative and pioneering initiative in Europe, under a public-private collaboration scheme and the participation of the academic field, which pursues, as its main objective, to promote sustained and sustainable economic growth in the region . Thus, the Junta de Andalucía, Unicaja, and its research company Analistas Económicos de Andalucía, together with Harvard University and the strategic consultancy Oliver Wyman, have joined forces to analyse the potential capacities of Andalusia in the current and future economic scenario, in order to have a diagnosis that allows the development of a roadmap with a view to achieving a better positioning of the autonomous community on the new map of European regions . The first results are expected to be presented before the end of the year.

This project has a triple objective: to identify opportunities to improve the functioning of the Andalusian economy, to analyse the potential of the different industries with a focus on sustained and sustainable economic growth and the creation of quality jobs, and to calculate the financing and investment needs to address the necessary transformations. The results of these analyses will be compiled in a series of reports that will include specific actions.

To carry out these analyses, the CREA Project works with economic and employment microdata from Andalusia, complemented by interviews with experts and other qualitative sources. To date, more than 60 data sources have been analysed and more than 100 interviews have been scheduled , to be carried out over two weeks, with the aim of gathering information from different companies and institutions that will allow the data collected to be put into context. As for the methodology used, on the one hand, the theory of economic complexity is being used, developed by Professor Ricardo Hausmann, one of the academic directors of the project, as well as advanced schemes for calculating financing needs applied by Oliver Wyman.

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