"Spain is the third country in the EU in connectivity and seventh in digital public services, with levels well above the European average (Digital Decade 2023 Report)."
Spain is a leader in connectivity and digitalization of public administrations, as pointed out in the Digital Decade 2023 report. The State's commitment to digitalization as the transforming axis of society and the economy has led it to develop policies to integrate citizens into an increasingly digital environment, as well as to bet on disruptive technologies such as AI, quantum computing or natural language.
The technology sector, one of the fastest growing sectors in Spain over the last decade, follows the guidelines set by the Digital Spain 2026 Plan, which is in turn aligned with Europe’s Digital Decade 2030 policy programme that pursues a vision of a sustainable and human-centered digital society.
Spain ranks first in the EU in coverage of very high capacity networks (more than 100 Mbps): 93% of the population has access to very high capacity fixed networks, 20 points above the EU average, according to the DESI 2023 Indicators (Digital Decade 2023 Report).
The ICT sector had a turnover of more than 120billion euros in 2022, representing growth of +6% over the previous year. With 35,333 national and international ICT companies (+3,5%) directly employing 764,128 people (+3,5%), the impact of the ICT sector on GDP reached a 3,84% in 2022.
The level of exports of goods and services from the ICT sector maintained the growing trend in 2022 to reach a record 20,738 million euros, representing 3.8% of Spain's total exports (Sector TIC, los medios y los servicios audiovisuales, ONTSI 2023).
In 2022, e-commerce registered a significant growth of +12,7% with a sales figure of 20,492 million euros. (Source CNMC).
Technology parks collaborate with the business sector by promoting innovation projects in collaboration with the ICT clusters present in almost all territories. The weight of the ICT sector in innovation is remarkable, since 36.7% of the companies that innovate in Spain belong to the ICT sector (Barómetro de la Economía Digital AMETIC, September 2023).
ICT is a mature sector in Spain where prestigious companies such as Telefónica, Amadeus, Indra or Everis lead projects in international markets.
With 192,915 mobile network base stations and 59.3 million mobile lines, foreign ICT companies and entrepreneurs choose Spain for its solid telecommunications infrastructure network and excellent connectivity.
A member of the EU and located in a strategic enclave for trade, Spain is a gateway to the EU market and to business with European partners. Spain has a dynamic ecosystem for startups, with cities and territories that stand out on the map of European innovation and digitization, with physical and legal security, social stability and an attractive way of life that makes the life experience of many digital nomads and their families unique.
Source: Digital Decade DESI 2023