Action plan progress
Action plan progress
Councillors from the four West Coast Councils, and board members from Development West Coast, were invited to a workshop in Reefton on Wednesday to receive an update on the Regional Growth Study Action Plan and one of the key pieces of work coming from this, the review of the Economic Development Arrangements.
Andrew Robb, Chairman of the Governance Group overseeing the Growth Study project, said development of the Action Plan was progressing well. “We can now see how the key priorities identified through the Growth Study will roll out in the future for the West Coast. While there is more work to do to finalise some of the actions and identify their funding streams, progress is good.”
The priorities from the Growth Study to see the West Coast make the most of the opportunities for the future were clear. They included:
- Growing the West Coast visitor economy
- Making it easier to invest and do business in the region
- Supporting economic diversification
- Improving connectivity and infrastructure
- Developing better economic development arrangements.
“The successful rollout of the Action Plan relies on getting the economic development arrangements for the West Coast right” said Mr Robb. “We have identified an option that will help us realise our potential. Now it is about fine tuning the details.”
More information on the review of the economic development arrangements, and the actions for the other priorities, will be released in mid-July at the launch of the Action Plan.
The West Coast was included in the Government’s Regional Growth Programme in November 2015 and West Coast leaders and Ministers launched the Growth Study in September 2016. The Growth Study Governance Group is made up of business leaders, the two West Coast rūnanga and Mawhera, as well as representatives from central and local government. Central government is supporting the West Coast to identify potential economic growth opportunities with the objective of increasing investment, employment and incomes for the region.