The extension of teleworking accelerated in 2020 and 2021 due to confinements. According to INE data, cross-checked by epdata, in our country the percentage of employed people who work from home more than half of the days more than half of the days increased from 4.8% in 2019 to 10.8% in 2020 and 9.5% in 2021. Data for 2022 are not yet available, but it is likely to remain well above the figure reached three years ago. What is the percentage of teleworkers in rural areas with less than 10,000 inhabitants?
Currently in Spain, areas with less than 10,000 inhabitants account for 20% of the population, although they represent 90% of the total number of municipalities (INE). Therefore, areas with few residents proved to be idyllic during the pandemic, as long as they were provided with the necessary services, such as high-speed Internet via fiber optics.
Fiber Internet coverage in rural areas is 66% (FTTH Council Europe. FTTH/B in Rural Areas 2022 ), so it is not always possible.
What is teleworking like in rural areas with Internet?
According to data collected by the ASTEO Observatory, in rural areas of less than 10,000 inhabitants, which do have Internet access, 25% of workers, i.e. 1 in 4, can telework. Although a significant part of the work in these municipalities requires presence, the increase in fiber deployments that are being carried out in these areas will undoubtedly contribute, or at least should encourage, the growth of teleworking.
It is clear that in order to be able to work remotely from rural areas, and anywhere, it is important to have high upload and download speeds, connection stability and low latency. For rural areas, the outlook for the coming years is positive. In 2025, according to the objectives set by the Digital Spain Agenda, 100% of the population should be able to access 100Mbps coverage. This is why the work being done by telecommunications operators, such as ASTEO Red Neutra, with its deployments in rural areas, is relevant, as it will accelerate the extension of fiber optics in territories known as Empty Spain.
