Minister comments on inaugural meeting of rural development ministers

Industry, Trade and Rural Development Minister Judy Foote attended the first ever meeting of federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for rural development in Kananaskis, Alberta from April 14-15, 2003. During the two-day inaugural meeting, which was chaired by Andy Mitchell, Secretary of State for Rural Development, ministers agreed to explore a collaborative approach to further advance the vitality of rural, remote and northern communities.

Minister Foote said she used the meeting as an opportunity to reiterate to the federal government the importance of moving forward with some form of federal-provincial cooperative mechanism. "It was important to impress on the federal government the implications that their unilateral withdrawal from cost-shared agreements will have on Newfoundland and Labrador, particularly our rural communities," said Minister Foote.

Ministers discussed a wide variety of rural issues and are committed to starting work immediately to develop a research agenda that will generate information communities can put to use to meet their challenges, including work on access to capital issues impacting rural areas, public-private partnerships and types of infrastructure investment.

During the meeting, ministers shared their current rural policies and programs and agreed to continue working closely together to share information and collaborate wherever possible.

Minister Foote indicated that the meeting was a good opportunity to showcase the progress being made in Newfoundland and Labrador, while at the same time learning from what other provinces and territories are doing to assist rural communities. "It was obvious that the challenges we face in rural Newfoundland and Labrador are not unique to our province," said Minister Foote. "While I talked about our approach to regional economic development, focussing on the opportunities and priorities identified by regional economic development boards and their stakeholders, similar processes exist in other provinces as we all endeavour to ensure the rural parts of our provinces and territories remain viable."

Ministers agreed that the well-being of rural Canada benefits the whole country. Future discussions will be directed toward federal-provincial collaboration aimed at the long-term sustainability and viability of communities so that they can provide an environment where people have access to economic and social opportunities to improve their quality of life and self-reliance.

Media contact: Tansy Mundon, Communications, (709) 729-4570.

2003 04 16                                         12:40 p.m.