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Available now are the speakers' papers and presentations and the conference conclusions.
The 2006 OECD Rural Conference took place in Edinburgh, Scotland on the 19-20 October, 2006. It constitutes the fourth of a series of conferences that started in Siena, Italy (2002), followed by Warrenton, Virginia, US (2004) and Oaxaca, Mexico (2005). While the previous conferences served to realise the need for new approaches to rural policy in response to the rapid changes that rural areas are facing across OECD countries, Edinburgh’s conference made an important step forward taking the discussion to the definition of priorities of investment in rural areas.
The conference, hosted by the Scottish Executive and the OECD counted with the presence of more than 120 senior policy officials and experts from 21 member countries and with delegations from China and Latin America. Welcoming remarks were made by Lesley Hinds, Lord Provost of the City of Edinburgh, and Margaret Clark, Deputy Chief Executive of the Commission for Rural Communities of the Countryside Agency at the UK.
The conference consisted of six plenary sessions. The opening session, Investing in rural areas, what are the priorities? included the following keynote speakers: Richard Hecklinger, Deputy Secretary General of the OECD, Thomas Dorr, Under Secretary for Rural Development of the United States Department of Agriculture, Sergio Soto, Under Secretary for Human and Social Development of the Ministry of Social Development of Mexico; and Richard Wakeford, Head of Environment and Rural Affairs of the Scottish Executive.
Three thematic panels followed: Fostering innovation in rural areas, Delivering services to sparsely populated regions and Exploiting rural-urban linkages. Keynote speakers included David McGranahan, Senior Economist from the Economic Research Service, USDA; Mark Shucksmith, Professor of Planning at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK and Chuck Fluharty, Director of the Rural Policy Research Institute, US. Five case studies of successful rural investment in services and business innovation were presented in session 5 (Italy, Spain, Mexico, Japan and Canada).
Finally, a rich concluding session wrapped up the discussions of the conference with the participation of Mark Drabenstott, Director of the RUPRI Center for Regional Competitiveness, US; Theo Agustin, Manager of Sustainable Rural Development of the Ministry of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture of Germany, Donald MacRae, Strategy and Finance Director of Lloyds TBS Scotland; and Fabrizio Barca, Chairman of the OECD Territorial Development Policy Committee.
Questions should be forwarded to: edinburghconference2006@OECD.org
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