Desarrollo económico social, cultural y procesos de gobierno de las ciudades intermedias (CIMES). Comparación entre dos ciudadesValladolid-España y Manta-Ecuador

Abstract

Comparing two cities so far apart geographically, Manta in Ecuador and Valladolid in Spain, from such different worlds with very different levels of development, is a very illuminating exercise. Such a comparison allows us to discover two cities with a similar population in number but with a very different make-up, younger in Manta and more elderly in Valladolid. There are differences in their socio-economic levels and in their standard of living, differences which can mainly be seen in the services that each city offers its citizens. A curious fact is the excess of housing in Valladolid, which almost exactly reflects the lack of housing in Manta. Future projects for Manta are of a macro-productive and structural service nature, while in Valladolid they are of a building nature. The most important common element is that both are medium-sized cities (CIMES) that act as intermediaries between the city and the surrounding territory; with intercontinental possibilities in the case of Manta, due to its geostrategic situation, and regional in the case of Valladolid. All this means that there are, in spite of the differences, causes in common, developmental coincidences in time, problems, challenges and similar intermediation and influencing roles, which can lead to a proposal for common criteria, approaches, methodologies and solutions, with applications that should be adapted to each context.