Lleida is among the Catalan areas most affected by the lack of basic village services, with around 60 municipalities in the province without a food shop and 26 also without restaurant services, according to a Generalitat study.
In response, the Catalan government has launched a €2.1 million aid programme for 2026 to help open or maintain multi-service establishments in small villages. The scheme was drawn up with the chambers of commerce and was published last Friday.
Across Catalonia, 175 of the 476 municipalities with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants have no food shop. That includes 34 in Ponent and 30 in the Pyrenees, meaning 40% of small villages in those areas lack a grocery store. In addition, 26 villages, 20 in Ponent and six in the Pyrenees, have no restaurant services.
The programme is aimed mainly at micropobles, villages with very small populations, but it also covers all municipalities with fewer than 2,000 residents. Xavier Amor, secretary for local governments, said the €2.1 million allocation for 2026 is intended to be continuous. The Generalitat says the funding could help create or keep 50 multi-service establishments.
These council-backed centres can combine several services, including food sales, restaurant facilities, parcel collection points and newspaper sales. The government says the aim is to provide basic services and support community life in rural areas, where 82.4% of micropobles face a high or very high risk of an ageing population.
Catalonia currently has 30 multi-service centres, including three in Ponent and two in the Pyrenees. They will also be eligible for support under the new rural commerce aid programme. In Bovera, in Lleida, mayor Òscar Acero said the town will open its first multi-service shop in about a month and a half, in a municipal building that is being adapted for the purpose.
Residents in other parts of the province say the lack of nearby shops still affects daily life. Llorenç Sánchez, a resident of Ribera de Cardós and former mayor of Vall de Cardós for 12 years, said people often have to travel to buy basic supplies. Seven of the eight hamlets in Vall de Cardós lack a grocery store, and the one in Ainet only works properly in summer.