 From agriculture to mining: The changing economic base of a rural economy and implications for developmentJim A. McFarlane, Boyd Blackwell, Stuart W. Mounter and Bligh J. Grant Economic Analysis and Policy, 2016, vol. 49, issue C, 56-65 Abstract: This paper uses economic-base theory and input–output modelling to examine the structure of a regional rural economy in New South Wales, Australia, drawing important policy implications for economic planners. The most salient trend has been a shift in the area’s dependence from agriculture to mining over the recent decade. However, the level of diversity of the region’s industrial composition has altered very little. Mining is also contributing to significant net leakage of employment income from the region. Mining should therefore not necessarily be considered as the key future opportunity for economic development. Instead, a number of industry sectors, particularly those that foster innovation and technology, can be harnessed to drive future regional growth. In addition, a tourism marketing strategy promoting the region’s food, wine and other distinctive attributes should play an integral role in future development planning. These prescriptions are highly transferable to similar rural economies experiencing a shift to mining. Keywords: Agriculture; Central West; NSW; Australia; Economic base; Diversity; Mining; Tourism (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecanpo:v:49:y:2016:i:c:p:56-65 DOI: 10.1016/j.eap.2015.11.012 Access Statistics for this article Economic Analysis and Policy is currently edited by Clevo Wilson More articles in Economic Analysis and Policy from Elsevier |
Is your work missing from RePEc? Here is how to contribute.
Questions or problems? Check the EconPapers FAQ or send mail to .
EconPapers is hosted by the
School of Business at Örebro University.