By 2025, the Andalusian Government has planned a 6% increase for the Infoca budget which thanks to this will reach an amount of 257 million, of which 111.2 will be allocated to the extinction of forest fires and more than half will be invested in prevention measures.
More budget to INFOCA
The Minister of the Presidency, Interior, Social Dialogue and Administrative Simplification, Antonio Sanz, has announced in a question in the Plenary Session of Parliament that the Infoca budget for 2025 will reach 257 million euros6% more (14 million) than last year. Of them, more than 146 million (56.8%) will be used for prevention, while 111.2 will be used for extinction.
Antonio Sanz has highlighted that this figure means “breaking a record” because “security is an absolute priority for this government and once again we demonstrate it by allocating more resources to prevention than fire extinguishing«.
While in 2018 167 million euros were allocated together for both the prevention and extinguishing of fires in Andalusia, today almost 100 million more are used, giving priority to prevention. He Infoca Plan budget has grown steadily since 2019. Only in 2022 were the accounts the same as those of 2021, due to the extension of the budget.
Antonio Sanz has also highlighted that the 2025 accounts will once again have a budget item to “continue advancing in the stabilization of the workforce during the 365 days of the year, a demand of the group for decades and that no previous government wanted to address.
In this sense, last October, within the process of stabilization and expansion of contract coverage for Infoca workers, 371 firefighter positions were offered, of which 357 were awarded. Of these, 301 workers had the possibility of expanding the contract until the end of the year, with 294 those who voluntarily decided to extend their commitment to Infoca. Thus, have extended their period of activity until December, when until now they worked for six months a year.
These expansions are part of the process of stabilization and reduction of temporary employment of Infoca workers initiated by the Board and negotiated with the workers’ representatives, so that Infoca personnel carry out firefighting work all year round and also for other natural emergencies, such as floods, earthquakes or searching for people in natural spaces.
The counselor has stressed “the enormous satisfaction and gratitude to some professionals who, once again, have given their best to safeguard and protect us from the flames» after the end of the high fire risk period on October 15.
The INFOCA Plan is the instrument with which the Government of Andalusia has been equipped for the defense against fires in forest lands and its budget must be significant, given the importance of the work it performs.