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Economic Trends & Challenges Rural Communities Experience Challenging Times For every community that is experiencing growth, there are dozens of towns, villages and hamlets that are dangerously close to becoming extinct. Saskatchewan is experiencing a transition from a predominantly rural to urban community. Rural communities in Saskatchewan are experiencing challenging demographics, declining confidence levels, an undersized private sector, infrastructure decay, an eroding primary production sector and, as a result, a declining tax base. This has meant that the public services and private enterprises developed to serve rural populations have depreciated over the past years and today are in need of repair, replacement or are simply gone. Whether it is the loss of entire towns, closure of schools, health facilities, churches or retail stores, the trend has been clear and unrelenting. Heavy capital expenditure will be required to upgrade assets such as highways. A significant investment and repopulation of rural communities is required. Growth must occur in all areas of the province not only in the major cities. Saskatchewan Businesses Face Global Competition As Saskatchewan enters the 21st century, its economy faces intense competition in global markets; demand for productivity improvements and quality, and cost effectiveness. In order to achieve true economic growth for Saskatchewan, our businesses must become globally competitive not just locally competitive. This new economy brings with it tremendous opportunities and uncertainty. Saskatchewan has had a tradition of industrial underdevelopment compared to other provinces and regions. Economic developers have attributed this to the provinces geography, its location and distance from large markets. However, economic circumstances for Saskatchewan are changing. The new global marketplace and technological advances are providing an opportunity for business to market and compete from virtually any geographic location. What Businesses Need to Succeed in the New Economy If you talk to business owners. they will tell you that they desire the ability to conduct their business affairs with a minimum of regulation, in a competitive environment that provides access to markets in which to sell their goods and services in a manner that generates a fair return on the capital they have invested. They will tell you they want to exploit opportunity and markets. They want to grow their business enterprise, thereby creating employment and, of course, wealth. Most will express a desire to be good corporate citizens and contributors to the economic well being of their community and this province's diversity. As business becomes more dynamic and volatile, the successes will be reaped by those businesses with a strong entrepreneurial strength. In the new global economy, competitiveness and effectiveness are the key attributes for business success. Small business will need to know how to manage strategically, effectively and with long-term vision. Innovation is the Foundation of Long Term Growth Small business has an advantage in the new dynamic economy where product lifecycles are short and innovation is critical. The flexibility of small firms allows change to occur rapidly in response to changing market conditions. A growing percentage of innovation is now attributed to small business. Extensive historical analysis of successful market economies has shown that long-term growth occurs due to sustained innovation. Indeed in the long run, innovation is the foundation for long term growth. Innovation does not happen randomly or evenly across an economy. It occurs in particular places where conditions are most favorable. Innovation is more likely the greater the:
Our Communities Need 'Out of the Box' Thinking Often there is a tendency in rural areas to think of big, value-added agricultural projects as the community's only salvation. Hog, inland terminals, ethanol plants and processing facilities have injected much needed capital and economic activity into some Saskatchewan communities, but they are not a panacea for every town. We need some innovative, out-of-the-box thinking for communities to ensure business survival and growth. Communities need to engage in serious dialogue about sustaining innovation. Community leaders must seek common ground and engage the community to come together for a common purpose and develop a common vision for their future prosperity. Saskatchewan people appear to have an intuitive sense that if we pull together great things can happen, but the direction we must pull toward is clouded and uncertain. Saskatchewan communities must develop action plans that will deliver this out of the box innovation. Communities must attain business retention and expansion that is sustainable through effective planning. That is, communities will be encouraged to build on their strengths -- to start small and grow gradually rather than hitching their fortunes to one big project. This will ensure a community's success will not be attributed to one company or one industry, but rather community success will come from a series of small, homegrown, locally owned manufacturing, retail and service businesses as the foundation for community retention and growth. Obstacles to Economic Development Many family and locally owned businesses in rural areas are experiencing increased competition from larger enterprises. The greatest challenge is to convince local officials, business leaders and property owners that regional economic growth is positive. Many community stakeholders lack long-term view to invest in the necessary infrastructure. They reflect the popular notion that investing in infrastructure and attracting industry and business will cause taxes and cost of living to increase. Other obstacles to rural economic development may include poor working relationships and lack of trust amongst development groups, poor local self image, defeatist attitudes, limited vision, lack of outside investment, limited commitment to economic development, poorly developed policies or incentives and shortages of qualified volunteers to staff economic development initiatives. |
