Among the regions of Spain, Andalusia has one of the highest percentages of qualified young people. In Andalusia there are 10 public universities, business schools, over 300 technical training centres and nearly 2,000 research groups working in affiliation with the region´s universities and public and private entities. Andalusia´ university provides 129 different degrees, of which 49 (38%), are focused in technical education. These degrees help meet the demand for specialists throughout the business community.

Andalusia is noteworthy among Spain´s autonomous communities because its labor costs for businesses fall below the Spanish and European average. The region also boasts a high level of commitment and a low turnover rate.

Andalusia has a modern network of technology parks and technology centres that include clusters of specialized businesses working for the region´s improved technological development.

This network is composed of:

• 10 Technology Parks
• 16 Technology Centres
• 15 Innovation and Technology Centres and Foundations
• Enterprise and Innovation European Centres.

One group worth mentioning is RETA, a non-profit business association formed by technological areas in Andalusia. The group aims to boost collaboration and the sharing of strategies, knowledge and resources between businesses.

Also, the region has a wide range of industrial and office space available at competitive prices and equipped with the modern infrastructure needed to launch an industrial project.

Park list:

• Parque de Actividades Medioambientales de Andalucía (PAMA) - Aznalcollar (Sevilla)
• Parque Tecnológico Aeroespacial de Andalucía (Aerópolis) - San José de la Rinconada (Sevilla)
• Parque Científico y Tecnológico de Almería (PITA) - Almeria
• Parque Científico y Tecnológico del Aceite y del Olivar (Geolit) - Mengibar (Jaén)
• Parque Científico y Tecnológico Cartuja 93 - Sevilla
• Parque Científico y Tecnológico de Córdoba (Rabanales 21) - Córdoba
• Parque Tecnológico de Andalucía (PTA) - Malága
• Parque Tecnológico Agroindustrial - Jérez (Cádiz)
• Parque Tecnológico de Ciencias de la Salud (PTS) - Granada
• Tecnoparque Bahía de Cádiz (Tecnobahía) - Bahía de Cádiz

Andalusia has road communication systems that allows access to any part of the region and facilitate its external connetions. The region has:

• An extensive, high capacity transportation network (highways, motorways 871 of two lane highway, 2007)
• High-speed trains linking Seville, Cordoba and Malaga with amongst each other and with Madrid, in a maximum time of 2 hours 30 minutes. Extensions are planned to Cadiz (2012) and Granada (2013). Six airports of which 5 are international, with a passenger volume of nearly 21 million in 2008. Among these airports, Malaga ranks fourth in Spain with over 70 international flights including direct flights to the USA. 9 ports for reception and transport of goods. Algeciras is the Mediterranean port with the highest total container traffic. It witnesses an annual traffic of nearly 75 million metric tons of cargo (2008).

Incentives for employment and training

The aid scheme for employment and training is regulated at national level