The secret of the poorest village in Spain with a mayor from IU: big business and silence..

"Higuera de Vargas is a small town in the province of Badajoz, an hour's drive away on secondary roads. It is located near Jerez de los Caballeros and Olivenza, the latter being a point of reference."."

"Higera has just been recognized as the poorest city in Spain in terms of income per capita, which colloquially means it has the poorest people in the country. However, the first resident asked about this denies it. 'We're not that bad off,' he says."."

The tax service says that people here survive on12,737 euros per person per year. If we translate this into economic terms, it's easy to understand that the statistics are not in favor of the city's residents. For example, the minimum wage for2023 is15,120 euros per year. Or, in other words, with an exclamation tone, from the perspective of a worker who just learned this data in Madrid: "But even interns don't get that, right?"

However, purchasing power can be higher than in other areas, for example, in Madrid, with the same income. "Here the rent is about200 euros if you rent it, although most people own their homes, which are worth about60,000 euros," one resident noted for EL ESPAÑOL. Forget about having a room for that price in the capital of the kingdom.

In Higera de Vargas, the houses are low, mostly two stories. They are usually quite bright and, in some cases, even have a yard. Most of them are old buildings, but noise is not an issue. There are some houses for sale because, starting from the 1960s, the population has been gradually decreasing, reaching 4,000 residents. "We have less than 1,900 people," emphasizes Ángel Cabalgante, the mayor of Izquierda Unida in the city.

Mystery

The reason for the low income in the city is unclear. Residents are reluctant to speak on camera, but they are making guesses behind the scenes. "I could talk until eight in the evening, but I can't," one of them tells this newspaper. The mystery remains unsolved.

Another resident, however, is concerned about the fact that someone is pointing to the shadow economy: "If the problem is that the work is agricultural, many do not file a declaration, and those who do file it report the lowest incomes in order to receive a refund from the tax service."

Contrary to what one might think, Higera de Vargas is a place with open businesses. There are several bars: in the upper part of the town, at the intersection, at the gas station, or near the town square. Additionally, Caja Rural has two branches here. Dia, another private supermarket, an office supply store, and a "everything for a dollar" supermarket, along with plenty of agricultural work and even a coffee company.

Mystery

“This statistics is released annually, and in previous years it was Zainyos. This year it’s our turn. One thing is to be the poorest city in Spain, and another is to be the city with the lowest income per capita,” notes the mayor of the city. “We must understand that income per capita is statistical data from the tax authorities.”

In his opinion, "this does not mean that Higera de Vargas is the poorest town in Spain. In fact, there are two banks here. This is because money has to circulate. People are unemployed, just like everywhere else. These are people from predominantly agricultural or livestock villages, more likely the latter. And there is agricultural unemployment."

According to him, this means that for every "35 working days in a year, you have 6 months of unemployment during which you receive 400 euros and a little more. We have a population that requests this assistance and has temporary jobs, resulting in a lower income per capita."

But he insists: "There is a Dia supermarket, there is another private one, and there are several grocery stores with a meat department and a vegetable department." He notes that Café Vargas "is the only company we have, so to speak - it's PMP and not a small private entrepreneur, he means. He has five or six direct employees, plus some sales representatives who work in other places... He covers all of Extremadura and part of Andalusia."

The other workers in the city, as the mayor notes, are "independent livestock breeders living off their livestock. There are also bars...". The head of the city acknowledges that the services of the entire city are provided. "We have a nursing home, a medical center...".

A riddle

Kabalghante acknowledges that there is a problem of "brain drain." "The population has decreased; we have fewer than 1,900 residents. But, of course, young people, when they go away to university, do not come back. We have an aging population."

A man is withdrawing money in the city. However, that doesn't mean the city is poor. "It's not poor," insists Caballgante. "And from a citizenship perspective, there is no concern. People say: let them say what they want; let the people from Madrid come and see how we live."

Kabalghante is trying to solve the riddle using logic.

People here live wonderfully on what they have. "People in the villages have some products that they keep at home. Everyone has their own garden here. Tomatoes, salads, onions... There are olives for oil, they plant peas... All this harvest affects their grocery bills. They don't need to go out and buy them."

Despite all this, the mayor of Izquierda Unida does not remain indifferent to what is happening. "I cannot be indifferent. I care about this; it concerns me. As much as we can, if we can improve something, we will try to do it. It is not the municipality's responsibility, but we will not remain indifferent."

The idea is to "encourage entrepreneurship in some way. There is no other way. Let's see, support them just like Café Vargas. It's all about supporting entrepreneurs. There won't be any cement factories or bicycles here."

A company for everyone

If you ask the residents of the city about the rating, most of them laugh. No one wants to speak openly, although some point to the shadow economy. The mayor refuses to comment on such remarks.

Two residents walking around the city say that it's impossible for them to be the poorest. They hint that one can live well in the city thanks to assistance and other work done in secret. However, they do not provide specific examples.

Moreover, they explain that the situation in the city is not bad. As an example, they mention "La Benefica." "A few years ago, they distributed 400 euros per person for collecting corks," they explain.

The idea of "La Benefique" came about a few years ago. "Our grandfathers had land, and they decided to create a kind of cooperative society for the town. There are about 11 plots of land, each several hectares in size, owned by those born in Higera de Vargas."

“La Benefica is ultimately the city itself,” the mayor concludes. “All adults over 18, children of parents born in Higera de Vargas and registered in the city, are part of this community, which has a number of acquired rights.”

One of the residents works on his land with a tractor. "We have the right to exploit the land, to collect acorns, because acorns are gathered by hand here... I have the right to a certain number of plots per year, and I sell them. I have the right to keep a certain number of livestock - cows or goats, because there are no pigs in the pastures due to problems that occurred many years ago. We have the right to crops, to pastures... We have a ticket, and you can either exploit it or sell it to another neighbor," says Cabalgante.

The Genossoyuz of the city is mainly exploited by livestock breeders. A few people farm the land and pay a fee to the other residents. "The price changes every year," explains one of the residents. Then, when the results of the agricultural harvests are gathered, the money is distributed or a decision is made on where to invest this money.

Despite all this, living in this little town is not a torment. It's not a sad place, quite the opposite. People live well thanks to the services they have. "La Benefica, our idea, works great. We don't complain about life in Higera de Vargas. We love our town, and we are proud of it," say two residents.