Zaragoza wins bid to host Spain's new public health agency, beating Granada and six other cities

The decision

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez confirmed on Tuesday, 28 July 2026, that the Council of Ministers had selected Zaragoza as the seat of the State Public Health Agency (AESP). The announcement came during a press conference reviewing the political term before the summer break, earlier than the previously indicated August deadline. Sánchez framed the choice as part of a broader drive to decentralise state institutions.

Creo que es un nuevo ejemplo de lo que significa apostar por la cohesión territorial en nuestro país.

Eight cities had submitted bids by the 20 January deadline: Toledo, Granada, Zaragoza, Murcia, Barcelona, León, Oviedo and Lugo. The selection process was overseen by the Ministry of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory. The delay from February to August was attributed to the volume of applications received.

Zaragoza's winning proposal

The successful bid, led by the regional government of Aragon and backed by Zaragoza city council, proposed housing the agency in the Pavilion of Aragon from Expo 2008, a 7,000 square-metre building currently disused. The regional government committed 16.9 million euros to adapt the space and also offered temporary offices on the Expo site so the agency could begin operating before renovation works conclude.

The candidacy leaned on the city's scientific, university and healthcare ecosystem, advanced use of health data, and broad institutional and social consensus. Aragon's health minister, José Luis Bancalero, had said the region was not starting from scratch and that Zaragoza aimed to become a hub for evidence-based public health.

Granada's disappointment

Granada had been widely seen as a frontrunner. The Andalusian government publicly backed the city, earmarking over 10.3 million euros for the project. Its plan involved an initial 300,000-euro investment in a provisional headquarters at the Andalusian School of Public Health, followed by nearly 10 million euros to rehabilitate and equip the former San Cecilio Clinical Hospital as the permanent seat.

Andalusia's health minister, Antonio Sanz, had argued in June that Granada was the ideal location given its track record and the presence of the Andalusian School of Public Health. The city had already lost the race to host the State Agency for the Supervision of Artificial Intelligence, which went to A Coruña.

Agency's purpose and origins

The agency's creation was approved by Congress in July 2025, but its legal mandate dates back to Article 47 of the 2011 General Public Health Law. The Covid-19 pandemic lent urgency to the project after a small department within the Ministry of Health (the Centre for the Coordination of Health Alerts and Emergencies) had to shoulder epidemiological data collection and surveillance without sufficient staff or infrastructure.

Hace falta tener una Agencia Estatal de Salud Pública que nos permita tener todos los recursos que no tuvimos durante los primeros meses aciagos de la pandemia.

Once operational, the agency will coordinate public health surveillance, evaluate health risks, prepare for and respond to health crises, and provide technical advice and support to regional administrations. It is designed to work under the "one health" principle integrating human, animal and environmental health, with a stated focus on social determinants of health and health inequalities.

Next steps

While the Ministry of Health confirmed in February that the agency could operate from within the ministry until a seat was chosen, work continues on approving its statutes. Once statutes are in place, the process of appointing the governing board and other leadership bodies can begin.