Public Consultation on Rural Development Policy 2020+
- Published on: 4 September 2019
- Open for submissions from: 4 September 2019
- Submissions closed: 11 October 2019
- Last updated on: 11 April 2025
Consultation is closed
The Department of Rural and Community Development is currently developing a new, whole-of-Government rural development policy for Ireland. This will follow on from the Action Plan for Rural Development which was published in January 2017 and reaches the end of its three-year timeframe in 2019.
The new rural policy will be forward-looking, with a 5-year timeframe, and will focus on strengthening our rural communities and economies.
It will take account of:
- Emerging economic, societal and international developments, including changing demographics within rural communities,
- The increasing focus on climate change adaptation, diversification in the agri-food sector,
- the next version of rural funding schemes (for example, CAP and LEADER) ,
- New ways of working and the changing nature of jobs,
- and Brexit.
Public Consultation Survey
Public Consultation Survey
In order to develop the new policy, the Department held a series of consultation events over the last number of months to obtain stakeholder views on the challenges and opportunities facing rural Ireland. As a result of these events, the Department developed an online survey and invited input from the wider public, especially those with experience living and working in rural Ireland. The survey closed on 11 October 2019 and over 1,700 submissions were received.
This feedback will contribute to the development of the new policy, which is scheduled to be published in January 2020.
Public Consultation Workshops
The Department held two public consultation events to inform the next phase of rural development policy for Ireland. These workshops obtained the views of people on the challenges and opportunities facing them and their communities over the next five years, and the actions required to help rural Ireland realise its full potential. These events were held on Monday 30 September at the Hibernian Hotel in Mallow, Co Cork and Tuesday 01 October at The Heritage in Killenard, Co Laois.
The new rural policy is part of a suite of initiatives from the Department of Rural and Community Development to support and develop rural communities.