Rural Economy in Focus

05/04/2011

The rural economy must be able to adapt if it is to play its part in leading the re-balancing of the Northern Ireland economy - that was one of the main messages of a seminar entitled "The changing state of the rural economy: Where to now? hosted by the Rural Network for Northern Ireland.

Strengthening the social and economic enterprises in rural areas is one of the key themes of the current Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme. The stimulating seminar provided an opportunity for those working in the area of rural development to consider how their activities could provide support to maintain a healthy rural economy in these challenging times.

Over 70 delegates from across Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Europe attended the event and heard speakers from Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ireland Rural Network, the European Network for Rural Development (ENRD) and Invest NI as well as panellists from Enterprise NI, College of Agriculture Food & Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) and Ulster Community Investment Trust (UCIT) and representatives from the four banks.

The keynote address was delivered by Neil Gibson of Oxford Economics who gave an independent assessment of the outlook for the NI economy. "The rural economy has suffered considerably during the recession, losses in the construction sector, in industry and retailing have had a particularly adverse impact. Though the agri sector has done well on the back of a favourable exchange rate this sector alone will not be enough to bring prosperity to Northern Ireland's rural areas. As the public finances are slowly repaired in the UK and across Europe there will be a pressure on the level of public support available. It is imperative therefore that firms applying for funding see it as a platform towards establishing a sustainable business, and thereby helping to transform the rural economy into a place in which to invest, not one to simply support through persistent funding". Mr Gibson also remarked, "The challenges are significant, the recession has left lenders in a more cautious and considered frame of mind and thus the cases made to secure funding need to be credible and able to demonstrate real economic and financial potential. The economic forecasts suggest that it is imperative that credible cases are made and that the rural economy continues to transform if it is to play its part in leading the much sought after re-balancing of the Northern Ireland economy. He also added that there was considerable potential in sectors such as tourism, environmental and digital technologies and elderly care which could translate well into sustainable rural businesses.

Speaking at the event Mark Redmond of ENRD commented, "Rural entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland are not alone in facing challenging and uncertain times, and many of the concerns raised today are voiced again and again in many other parts of rural Europe. However, it is very encouraging to see the Rural Network for Northern Ireland engaging so fully and effectively with the local rural business community and stimulating such constructive discussions as we heard today."

Martin McDonald of the Rural Network for Northern Ireland said "The recession has already impacted on the rural economy. Today's timely event has brought economic specialists and rural development practitioners together to discuss how we can work to ensure the various elements of the RDP can be adapted to meet these new challenges".

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[Pictured during the event L-R: Dr Fergal Tuffy (South West College Dungannon), Neil Gibson (Oxford Economics), Sharon Polson (Invest NI), Mark Redman (ENRD), Shauna McCarney (Heavenly Tasty Organics), Dr Pat Bogue (Broadmore Research), Ursula Cushnahan (Loughshore Veg Ltd), Martin McDonald (Rural Network for NI) and Pauline Keegan (DARD)].

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