Productive agriculture is a major part of life in rural Ireland.
However it is not everything.
And a great deal of people live in rural communities who are not engaged with agriculture.
For centuries, Irish people have lived in dispersed, rural communities close to the land and nature.
Today, we see a drift more and more toward urbanisation.
And while all of that is fine, many rural communities are suffering from de-population and become a victim of poor infrastructure, education, health and social services.
I firmly believe the areas of Ireland with hidden potential are our rural regions.
And they require investment and planned supports to bring them into the twenty-first century.
The family farm has been the centre of rural life for generations however the viability of farming is continually under pressure.
We in Sinn Féin want to establish a commission on the future of the family farm in order to look at each sector and plan a long-term, viable future for the family farm so that more young people will choose agriculture as a way of making their living and sustaining their family farming traditions.
This commission will include people who are experts and bring ideas on how we can turn around the fortunes of agriculture.
Farmers themselves need to be part of that conversation – they are the real experts.
The price which farmers receive for their produce is key to the viability of rural communities.
The state has a role to play as a regulator to guarantee a fair price for quality produce.
The state also has a role to play in planning long-term, funded, schemes that work to protect the viability of farming and compensating where necessary for the public goods – both social and environmental – that farming provides.
Many in the sector have employment off the land just to keep their heads above water.
This is why it is crucial that we develop employment opportunities in our rural towns and villages.
Young people are better educated than ever before.
Many of them want to raise their children where they were brought up, to send them to the school they went to, and play for the local club they played for.
They understand better than most that close-knit rural communities have a social value, as well as economic opportunity.
Digital infrastructure like broadband and communication services are essential for rural areas.
Opportunities around the green economy – particularly renewable energy – have a major role to play in the future of rural Ireland.
Nearly a century of failed housing policy now means housing is a major problem right across the island.
People must have the opportunity to live and flourish in rural communities.
Our border region has been particularly negatively impacted by economic decline and the difficulty of two jurisdictions following an unnatural frontier.
Closer cross-border cooperation and preparation for unity will be critical to address this.
Recently, at the Ploughing I hosted an event where a panel of speakers discussed the future of farming and rural sustainability in a united Ireland.
Just as the European Union and the Common Agricultural Policy is central to agriculture and rural development, the EU is also central to seed funding the new, united Ireland.
As we move forward towards this, it is our responsibility to communicate policies which protect the environment, offer opportunity and sustainability for rural communities to grow and thrive in a new, modern and united Ireland.
