Seguro urges state investment and local trust for Portugal's inland territories

Appeal for interior investment

President of the Republic António José Seguro travelled to the municipality of Vila Nova de Cerveira, located in the northern district of Viana do Castelo, on Sunday, 23 August 2026. Delivering an address at the local municipal hall, the head of state called directly on the central government to allocate greater attention and funding to Portugal's inland territories and border regions in the name of a cohesive country. Seguro stated that true territorial cohesion is not measured by the political or financial weight of capital cities, but by the capacity of regional communities to remain vibrant, reinvent themselves, and sustain local populations.

A cohesive country is not measured by the strength of its capitals, but by the vitality of its territories. And Portugal needs communities that resist, that reinvent themselves, that attract those who come from outside and do not let go of those who want to stay.

Demographic challenges and local governance

The president focused his assessment on three persistent structural difficulties affecting inland territories and the border zone, known locally as the raia: ongoing depopulation, an aging demographic profile, and physical remoteness from national decision-making centres. To counter these systemic imbalances, Seguro asserted that the central state must provide a three-part response comprising sustained public investment, focused political attention, and expanded trust in municipal authorities across the territory.

Seguro maintained that local councils are uniquely qualified to manage local development and public needs, arguing that municipal leaders know their people and their specific requirements better than anyone else. He rejected the premise that a small resident population restricts civic vision or local growth, emphasizing that being small in population does not mean being small in ambition, and pointed to Vila Nova de Cerveira as an example of municipal ambition.

Cultural identity on the northern border

The presidential visit took place during the town's International Art Biennial, an established cultural exhibition hosted within the municipality. Seguro observed that Vila Nova de Cerveira holds an advantage that few Portuguese councils possess because it understands its distinct character, defining itself simultaneously as a medieval fortress and a centre for artistic expression. He drew a connection between the medieval heritage of King Dinis's stone castle and the creative freedom found in the canvases and sculptures presented at the Bienal.

It knows itself as castle and it knows itself as art. It knows itself as border and it knows itself as bridge. And this double identity between the stone of King Dinis's castle and the freedom of the canvases and sculptures of the Bienal makes this municipality a unique place on the map of Portugal. May it continue to deserve this dual vocation, as a guardian of the border that unites and not of the border that separates.

Seguro concluded his remarks by emphasizing that this dual identity positions the municipality as a unique location across the country. He noted that border municipalities must continue fulfilling their vocation as guardians of a frontier that brings people together rather than dividing them, ensuring that inland communities can continue to attract newcomers from outside while preventing existing residents who wish to remain from leaving.