Actually, the Algarve was the only region in Portugal to register positive results precisely because of the seasonal cycle that sees the creation of a large number of temp jobs directly connected to the tourism sector.

According to data from the Institute of Employment and Professional Training – IEFP – the month of July saw 25,928 unemployed individuals in the region, representing a 6.9% and a 1.4% drop when compared to June 2013 and July 2012.

The region is enjoying an overall tourism boom this summer season with information from the Association of Hotels and Resorts of the Algarve – AHETA – reporting occupancy rate per room in July was 81,6% which means a 3.7% increase when compared with the same month in 2012.

The data from the IEFT also shows a large increase in the number of individuals searching for their first job. These individuals number 58,722 now, indicating a 17.5% and 2.9% hike when compared with the same period in 2012 and June this year, respectively.

When it comes to those individuals who have lost their jobs in the past year and are now looking for work, there’s been a 4% increase in July compared to 2012, but a 0.6% decrease in relation to June. These individuals make up 629,377 of the jobless population.

The bane of the population still continues to be long-term unemployment. The data from this point is not very optimistic, recording a 1.1% increase in July compared to June and a 27.1% rise when compared to July of 2012. Long-term unemployment means being out of a job for more than 12 months and almost half the people signed up at job centres are affected by it.

Overall the country’s unemployment rate was down to 16.4% in the second quarter of 2013, from 17.5% in the first quarter.

A bitter exchange of statements and counter-statements has broken out recently between the Turismo de Portugal board and the low-cost, Irish airline, Ryanair, over the claims that the Portuguesse authorities have rejected the company’s proposal for increasing winter flights to Faro Airport in order to boost the number of off-season visitors.

According to the airline, it planned to introduce three new winter routes to Faro Airport, which would increase weekly flights by 35% thus increasing the traffic in Faro by about 70,000 passengers.

Then, in a press release, the Portugal tourism board said that it doesn’t have the authority to decide on such matters and that Ryanair could invest into its Faro routes however, the board did admit that it refused to pay the airline the amount of money requested in order to strengthen its presence in the Algarve because it considered it to be ‘disproportionate’ to the plan’s real value.

But it didn’t end there, it couldn’t really end there, with Ryanair then stating that with this new plan the company can cause a rapid increase in winter tourism and traffic – which would result in more jobs – because the travel sector reacts very quickly to stimulus, and then jabbed at the Turismo de Portugal saying that for an organization whose brief is to promote the Algarve, they shouldn’t ignore the continent’s largest carrier and Faro’s main airline, especially when considering that the country’s unemployment rate is at 18%

Then of course the board counter-attacked saying that they are committed to increase winter traffic to the Algarve however, this must be accomplished via correct and adequate management of public funds and a balanced strategy. They continued to say that the Irish company had already benefitted from public funds in the past, and that even though Ryanair had proposed creating new routes for the Algarve during the winter in the past, it had cancelled those plans even when funding was made available.

So it’s a giant game of ‘he said, she said’ and it remains to be seen what will happen in the future.