Living Conditions in Portugal

By Aurízia Anica - English translation of the Portuguese original by Fernando Carrapiço - both Escola Superior de Educação da Universidade do Algarve, Faro, PORTUGAL, 1997

Contribution to the EDUVINET "Living Conditions of EU Citizen" subject

In the following text we seek to show that Portuguese society has experienced a fast developing process of modernisation since the 1960's. But the model of the Welfare State responsible, in part, for this modernisation, especially that which was adopted in the 70's and 80's, is unviable in its future and is currently under review.

1. THE POPULATION AND EMPLOYMENT

1. 1. Age-structure of the population

The population of Portugal was nearly 6 million inhabitants when the Republic was founded in 1910; in the middle of the century there were already 8.5 million and in 1991, when the last census of the population was done, it reached 9.9 million persons. This apparent continuous growth occurred at different rhythms, as can be seen in the diagram and figure 1:

Quadro 1 - População Residente por grupo etário

Gráfico 1 - População Residente por grupo etário (4,84 KB)

so that we may focus only on the last decades, we can observe the decrease of the population during the 1960's, as a result of the massive outflow of young and active Portuguese into Europe; the rapid growth in the 70's, as a result of the end of the war in Guinea, in Angola and in Mozambique and of the return of many Portuguese at the time of the independence of these countries, aswell as the return of many European emigrants to Portugal, as a result of the economic crisis during the 70's; thus, during the 80's, it can be noted that there is a watershed in the Portuguese population growth, as the emigration begins to slowly build up again and the effects of this - even though opposed to the new immigration coming mainly from the Portuguese speaking countries - are accompanied by a significant drop in the birth-rate.

The process of modernisation of the Portuguese population which belatedly unfolds in Portugal compared with that of other European countries, starts in the decades 1920 - 30, but it intensifies and speeds up, beginning in the 60's. The birth-rate fell from 24.3% in 1960, to 11% in 1993. Even if Portugal evidenced the highest infantile mortality-rate of the EU, this fell from 77.5% in 1960 to 8.6% in 1993 (diagram and graph 2).

Quadro 2 - Taxa de mortalidade

Gráfico 2 - Taxa de mortalidade (6,74 KB)

The increase in age of the whole population, one of the most salient features of the Portuguese demographic evolution during the last decades, resulted from the coupled effect of the reduction in number of children per woman, which today is not enough to guarantee the replacement of the generations, and of the reduction of mortality, either at the top end or the lower end.

Graph "Age-pyramids for Portugal in 1960, 1970, 1981 and 1991" (8,29 KB)

1. 2. Youth and the aged in the total of the population

As can be observed in the age-pyramids shown above, the increase in age of the population results from diminution of the number of individuals with less than 15 years and from the increase in those who are more than 65 years old. The percentage of the population with more than 65 years of age rose from 8% to 14% between 1960 and 1991, while the population with less than 15 years of age dropped from 29% to 20%.

In 1960, a Portuguese had a life-expectancy of 60.7 years (for women, the value increase to 66.4 years); in 1994, life-expectancy was 10.5 years more for men and 11.8 years more for women (Diagram and graph 3).

Quadro 3 - Esperança de vida à nascença

Gráfico 3 - Esperança de vida à nascença (5,08 KB)

This substantial increase in life expectancy of the Portuguese, longevity that, in fact, is still less than that for Europe - results, simultaneously, from the increase in life-expectancy at birth and the increase in longevity for the aged.

The average size of Portuguese families has begun to grow. Portuguese now get married later than was customary in the 80's, have fewer children and get divorced more often (diagram and graph 4).

Quadro 4 - Nupcialidade e divorcialidade

Gráfico 4 - Nupcialidade e divorcialidade (5,51 KB)

Family life has become less formal and more diversified in style: partnerships have, in fact, tended to show an increase, aswell as numbers of children born out of wedlock (diagram and graph 5).

Quadro 5 - Nascimentos fora do casamento

Gráfico 5 - Nascimentos fora do casamento (9,74 KB)

1.3. Employment and unemployment

Another aspect of this modernisation of Portuguese society which gained speed in the 60's has to do with the exodus from rural areas of the population. In 1960, the primary sector totalled 43.6% of the population; in 1994, this sector employed only 11.8% of the population. The Secondary Sector shrank after 1982. On the other hand, the third sector which made up 27.5% of the population in 1960, absorbed more than half of the population from 1992 onwards (diagram and graph 6).

Quadro 6 - População empregada por sectores de actividade

Whilst in the country there was a tendency by individuals to take up various economic activities, which allowed for the diversification in sources of family income, in the suburbs of the larger towns (Lisbon and Oporto) and in the medium-sized towns along the coast and the interior the migrants from the interior manifested concentrations who were on the lookout for work and a better way of life. The Algarve became known as an attractive area, either for national self-employed professionals and foreigners, or for European pensioners in search of sun and tranquillity.

At the time of the international economic recession during the 70's the full employment in Europe that followed the Second World War came to an end, a period of heavy emigration of Portuguese to the most attractive countries: France and the Federal Republic of Germany. Internally, added to the effects of the recession in Portugal, the consequences of the return of some of the emigrants to these countries, of the demobilisation of soldiers at the end of the colonial war and of decolonialisation, facts that caused the number of unemployed to soar from 4% in 1974 to 7.2% which is indicated in 1977 (diagram and graph 7).

Quadro 7 - Desemprego (sentido lato)

Gráfico 7 - Desemprego (8,18 KB)

Now the growth of unemployment in 1983-85 and in 1992-94 is found to be mainly connected to the advancing of the economic scene. Today, Portugal has an unemployment figure below the European average, following a tendency that can be seen from the beginning of the 80's. Generally, this fact is attributable to the employment-market flexibility which was adapted mainly via means of lower effective wages (diagram and graph 8), the use of temporary work contracts, to the low benefits for unemployment and training schemes. The price of this flexibility fell mainly upon the youth of the country, women and the very old.

Quadro 8 - Salário mínimo nacional para a Indústria e Serviços

Gráfico 8 - Salário mínimo nacional para a Indústria e Serviços (4,54 KB)

2. THE WELFARE STATE AND THE WELL-BEING OF THE CITIZEN

A tardy and wanting formation of the Welfare State relates to the belated modernisation of Portuguese society. Both in town and country the social solidarity with inter-city connections filled the gaps that the state persisted to ignore. Despite the first obligatory National Insurance scheme having been set up in 1935, aimed at caring for sickness, invalidity, age and for death, the state's socio-political principles, until 1973, were those of a role, supplementary within the state with regard to private initiatives, and of the obligatory nature of registering with the system. From 1973 to 1976, the principles of free health-care for all were firmly entrenched and as a result, therefore, only from this point on, is it possible to speak of a true Welfare State. However, the inter-city solidarity networks that existed until now continued to fill those deficient gaps in an imperfect Welfare State suffering from serious and continuous lack of resources. From 1990, Portugal launches into an epoch governed by the principles of market openness and of enlarging social consciousness and responsibility of the public at large and also that of the state.

2. 1. Education

The investment in education and skilled worker-training programmes, at present, understood to be the most effective means for countering the structural unemployment in accompaniment, obviously, with the coupled investment necessary forthe creation of jobs with a future. To train firms and personnel is a government priority for equipping them for the challenges of building Europe, of internationalisation and to technological change. With reference to the learning setup, current priorities are geared to:

a - the reducing of illiteracy (in 1991, 16% of the resident population had not had any level of education and 4.1% of the active population of more than 12 years of age neither knew how to read or write);

b - the spreading of pre-school learning (which, also in 1991, did not reach a per capita value, within the age-group of 3 to 5 years, of 50%);

c - the obligatory school-going period of 9 years (about 35% of the pupils did not complete their obligatory term of education)

Quadro 9 - Despesa pública com a Educação

Quadro 10 - Taxas reais de escolarização 1990/91 %

Quadro 11 - Ensino superior - Alunos matriculados

Gráfico 11 - Ensino superior - Alunos matriculados (4,47 KB)

d - the improvement in standard of basic secondary education, once the democratisation of the academic system which was developing at the time since the 60's (diagrams and graphs 7, 9 and 10), absorbing ever-increasing "slices of the academic product" (diagram and graph 8), did not keep up a character of the high standards required.

Quadro 12 - Despesa pública com a educação em % do PIB

With the result, Portuguese students, when compared with their European peers, revealed a worrying lack of education;

e - the raising in level of education of the teaching staff in higher education that did not keep pace with the rate of growth of this sector (diagram and graph 10) and which is considered one of the main requirements for improving this level of education.

Quadro 13 - Ensino superior - Alunos matriculados

Gráfico 13 - Ensino superior - Alunos matriculados (4,41 KB)

2.2. Health

The increase in life expectancy and the drop in infant-mortality, as we have already seen, are good indicators of the advance in health of the Portuguese during the last decades. Although, the advancements realised are not yet enough to pull Portugal from out of the wake of Europe referring to the indicators shown.

Along with the Constitution of 1976, the National Health Service, was set up as universal and free. It was considered necessary to make public health services both universal and equal for the whole population that, at this time, already embraced about 86% of the population. Beyond the traditional service given through health-care, concern was for prevention, for therapy and for recovery. From 1990, with an increasingly high level of responsibility, attempts were made to unite state responsibility with that of the individual citizen in setting the budget for the health-care service, (diagram and graph 14).

Quadro 14 - Despesas com a saúde por habitante

Gráfico 14 - Despesas com a saúde por habitante (3,93 KB)

The efforts towards betterment of the health-care service are obvious; for example, in the doctor/patient relationship (diagram and graph 15): the ratio of 1 doctor to 1,256 persons in 1960, changed to 1 doctor to 341 persons in 1994.

Quadro15 - Habitantes por médico e técnico de saúde

Gráfico 15 - Habitantes por médico e técnico de saúde (4,29 KB)

In this respect Portugal is placed above the EU average. The same thing happened with the pharmaceutical/patient ratio. Development is very significant with regard to hospital health-care for midwifery: in 1960, only 18.4% of the child deliveries were carried out in hospitals, in 1994, nearly all the child deliveries receive hospital care (diagram and graph 16).

Quadro 16 - Partos e assistência ao parto

Gráfico 16 - Partos e assistência ao parto (4,98 KB)

The efforts to curb tuberculosis have shown lacking so that they cannot compare favourably with the European level of achievement, the problem worsening in the last few years due to the impoverishment of lifestyle in certain poverty pockets and in the subculture and, even, of the spread of AIDS (diagram and graph 17).

Quadro 17 - Tuberculose

Gráfico 17 - Tuberculose (4,19 KB)

In short, one can say that in Portugal, public health has priorities:

• Eradicate those diseases that are endemic in less developed countries, like tuberculosis, and, at the same time, control new pathological problems, like cancer and AIDS;
• Reconceive available resources, improving the quality of services offered;
• To make more extensive and far-reaching those public services which are less accessible, especially for people with a poorer lifestyle.

2.3. Social security

Portugal is on the last-but-one place in the EU with regard to social security spending. Meanwhile, noting the development of this spending in % of the PIB (diagram 22), it can be seen: a) the low level that pertained in 1960; b) the accelerated growth up until 1976 and from 1986 to 1993, with the exception of 1989; the deceleration in 1977-1979 and in 1982-85.

Quadro 18 - Despesa anual da Segurança Social em % do PIB

In 1935, social protection would have been planned in cases of illness, invalidity, ageing and death. But it was only from 1962-63, 1965 and 1966 that maternity-care, protection in the case of accidents at work and survival, respectively, were added to the system. From 1975, unemployment benefit was set up which had already been planned from 1935 onwards.

The general ageing of the population and the feeble growth of the system up to the end of the 60's had a fiercely evident influence on the quality of this growth, which, at the price of lowering the standards of the services available, was very rapid. The problem was rooted mainly in the fact that a large part of the recipients of care had not made contributions and the relationship that existed between the working population and pensioners: in 1960 there were 28 workers for every pensioner; in 1970 there were 12; in 1980 there were 2.4; and in 1993 there were only 1.7.

3. PROBLEMS OF THE PRESENT

The Portuguese, generally, live better today than they did 30 years ago. They have more freedom, more buying-power, more taxes to pay. Maybe they are happier, but this is difficult to ascertain properly. Changes are also noticeable if we look specifically at the last 5 years:

Gráfico "Conforto das Famílias" (124KB) from "Expresso" de 26/07/97

Meanwhile, as is well known, number averages can hide deep and disparate truths. Really, one of the main problems to be sorted out is that of defining the criteria for the distribution of wealth of the Welfare State, in order to "put right" the existing inequalities and avoid social out-casting. In this area, poverty is one of the major problems and it demands action:

• 26 % of the Portuguese live below the poverty-level;
• 55 % of the aged who live alone, live below the poverty-level;
• 43 % of families with 3 or more children live below the poverty-level;
• nearly one in every three family groups lives in poverty;

But widespread avoidance of payment of state taxes puts an obstacle in the way of proper wealth distribution:

• From 1985 to 1993, fraud and the evasion of tax declaration represented 30% of the revenue received!

Bearing these facts in mind, for the present time we can identify the following problems of the Portuguese people:

1. With a population which is getting older by the day, how to keep going with a Welfare State without sacrificing present and future generations ?
2. If the solving of this problem were that of everyone fulfilling their obligation to pay the taxes, what to do in order to be sure that under the law everyone did pay ?
3. How to improve the standard of the state social-services without increasing taxes ?

Now we propose that you discuss the solutions that may be given for these problems.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

For an introduction to the subject, you can consult the following works:

ALMEIDA, João Ferreira de, et al., 1992, Exclusão Social, Oeiras Celta Editora.

BANDEIRA, Mário Leston, 1996, Demografia E Modernidade. Família E Transição Demográfica Em Portugal, Lisboa, IN/CM.

BARRETO, António, (org.), 1996, A Situação Social Em Portugal, 1960-1995, Lisboa, ICS.

CARREIRA, Henrique Medina, 1996, As Políticas Sociais Em Portugal, Lisboa, Gradiva.

FERREIRA, E. de Sousa; RATO, Helena, et al., 1994, Portugal Hoje, Lisboa, INA.

LOPES, Ernâni Rodrigues, et al., 1989, Portugal: O Desafio Dos Anos Noventa, Lisboa, Editorial Presença.

MATTOSO, José (dir.), 1994, História De Portugal, Vol. VIII, Lisboa, Círculo de Leitores.

MEDINA, João (dir.), 1993, História De Portugal, Vol. XV, Amadora, Ediclube.

OLIVEIRA, César (dir.), 1996, História Dos Municípios E Do Poder Local (Dos Finais Da Idade Média À União Europeia), Lisboa, Círculo de Leitores.

REIS, António (coord.), 1994, Portugal. 20 Anos De Democracia, Lisboa, Círculo de Leitores.

SANTOS, Boaventura de Sousa, 1990, O Estado E A Sociedade (1974-1988), Porto, Edições Afrontamento.

SANTOS, Boaventura de Sousa, 1994, Pela Mão DE Alice. O Social E O Político Na Pós-Modernidade, Porto, Edições Afrontamento.