Vol. 575 No. 5
46 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the work to date of the National Rural Development Forum and its plans for future work; when the next meeting of the forum will be held; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28561/03]
The fifth meeting of the National Rural Development Forum took place on 7 November 2003 in Cashel, County Tipperary. The programme for the forum included a progress report on the White Paper on rural development and the CLÁR programme, a presentation on disability issues in a rural context by the Disability Federation of Ireland, a progress report on the study of supports for enterprise in rural areas and the Leader mid-term review. This was followed by workshops to discuss the principles and challenges for rural development. The outcome of the workshops was discussed in a plenary session of the forum.
The forum was established to debate current issues, review existing programmes and identify suitable policy responses to rural problems. Its membership is broadly representative of Departments, State agencies, the social partners and the wider voluntary and community sector. The forum, therefore, provides an opportunity for various actors involved in rural development to voice ideas about the way forward. The outcome of the deliberations of the forum will feed into policy review in the area of rural development which is particularly timely in the context of ongoing EU reforms. A date for the next forum has not yet been set, but I expect it to be in mid-2004.
