Francisco de la Torre Prados

Born in Malaga in 1942.
Married with four children.
Bachelor of Sociology from the Pontifical University of Salamanca.
Regional Development Specialist from Rennes, France.
PhD in Agricultural Engineering from the University of Madrid.

Francisco de la Torre Prados has been the Mayor of the city of Málaga since the year 2000 and has been re-elected four times with an absolute majority in 2003, 2007, 2011, and 2023, and twice with a simple majority in 2015 and 2019.

He has chaired the Finance Committee and the Mobility and Accessibility Committee of the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces. He served as Vice President of the Andalusian Federation of Municipalities and Provinces and was a member of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe. He was a Member of Parliament for Málaga (UCD) during Spain’s Constituent Legislature and the First Legislature, from 1977 to 1982, and served as Senator for Málaga (PP) between 2011 and 2014. He was also the Regional Minister for Economy, Finance and Tourism in the first Pre-Autonomous Government of Andalusia.

He served as Vice President of the Bureau of the Euro-Mediterranean Regional and Local Assembly (ARLEM), representing the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR), and as Vice President until 2020 of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership of Local and Regional Authorities (COPPEM). In January 2025, he was once again appointed as a member of the Bureau of ARLEM.

In 2017, he was awarded the Legion of Honour by the French Republic for his exceptional collaboration with France in the field of culture. In 2019, he received the Foreign Minister’s Commendation from Japan in recognition of his outstanding contribution to fostering friendship between Japan and Spain. In 2022, he was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette, presented by the Ambassador of Japan to Spain, Kenji Hiramatsu.

In 2020, he was appointed as a member of the Advisory Board of UNITAR, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research. In 2022, the United Kingdom granted him an Hon OBE (Honorary Officer of the Order of the British Empire) for his services to bilateral relations, highlighting his role in promoting ties between the United Kingdom and the city of Málaga.