The town in Spain that's home to 72 nationalities who are helping in the fight against depopulation

Cultural diversity is the best weapon to combat depopulation, it is also a clear cultural enrichment, as well as a major tourist attraction. The town of Órgiva in Granada province's Alpujarra area boasts 72 different nationalities and is well aware of the importance of its diversity.

Almost a third of the population (26.42%) of Órgiva is made up of immigrants from other countries, another third (38.20%) is made up of people from other parts of Spain and the remaining third (35.38%) are people who were born in the town.

Of the 2,311 foreign residents in Órgiva, a significant number come from the United Kingdom (754), followed by Germany (253), the Netherlands (171), Romania (153), Morocco (138), France (124) and Italy with 108 residents. There are also people from Belgium, the United States and Switzerland, Gambia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Sierra Leone, among others.

This mixture of cultures is palpable in the town and in the words of the mayor of Órgiva, Raúl Orellana, it is "a very important factor both socially, economically and culturally". For a municipality the size of Órgiva, the mayor continues, "this figure makes the town one of the most multicultural centres. Diversity that enriches the daily life of our residents, who live together in a totally normalised way". In short, says the mayor, "languages, customs, cuisines and ways of understanding the world coexist in the same space, and this enriches us as a municipality and as people".

"In regions where depopulation is a challenge, the arrival of foreign people contributes to maintain or even increase the number of inhabitants, to rejuvenate the age pyramid and to sustain services and activities that depend on the volume of population," says Orellana, who concludes that "from the town hall we will continue to contribute to generate spaces of interculturalism and community participation, projecting an image of an open, attractive and plural municipality."