The Diputació de Girona will deploy fiber optics in thirteen rural municipalities in the demarcation that still do not have broadband internet connection, after receiving funding from the European Regional Development Fund within the Feder de Catalunya 2021-2027 program.
The action reaches areas where the lack of coverage coexists with the public objective of retaining population and maintaining services. The plan is precisely aimed at dispersed nuclei and small municipalities where the digital divide weighs more heavily, with the forecast of acting in regions such as La Garrotxa, L'Alt Empordà, La Cerdanya, El Ripollès, and the interior of La Selva.
The General Directorate of Local Administration approved two operations for thirteen municipalities
The General Directorate of Local Administration has given the green light to the two operations proposed by the corporation to extend the network. One of them is concentrated in La Garrotxa and the other is located in the border area.
The first line includes Susqueda, Brunyola, Montagut i Oix, Vidrà, Maià de Montcal, Tortellà, and Riudaura. The project includes municipalities from Osona gironina, the interior of La Selva, and La Garrotxa, with eight differentiated actions.
The second operation will reach Campelles, Pardines, Fontanals de Cerdanya, Terrades, Mollet de Peralada, and Sant Climent Sescebes. In that case, the intervention affects municipalities in L'Alt Empordà, La Cerdanya, and El Ripollès, with seven differentiated actions.
The actions will focus on nuclei such as Sant Martí Sacalm, Sant Martí Sapresa, and Urtx
The deployment will not be distributed homogeneously throughout each municipal term, but will be directed to specific nuclei where the lack of broadband remains unresolved. Among the mentioned points are Sant Martí Sacalm, in Susqueda, Sant Martí Sapresa, in Brunyola, and Urtx, in Fontanals de Cerdanya.
In addition to improving digital connectivity, the Diputació links the investment to reducing the digital divide and combating depopulation. The territorial integration of the project is situated within the Integrated Territorial Strategy for the demarcation of Girona and the objectives of the Rural Agenda of Catalonia.
In the economic section, the eligible cost of the project amounts to 6,159,237.87 euros. Of that amount, the Diputació de Girona will assume 60%, equivalent to 3,695,542.72 euros, while the Feder program will contribute the remaining 40%, another 2,463,695.15 euros.