It has particular significance for me as the first woman to hold the position of Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. And tonight certainly provides an appropriate setting given that the two case study organisations involved in the Report are the Victorian Farmers Federation and the South Australian Farmers Federation, both of course, being members of the National Farmers Federation. Changing economics of farming and our society I think we all agree that a difficult international climate and poor commodity prices have meant that we have all have had to look at new approaches to Australian agriculture. Obviously, if Australia is to have a significant presence in the international market place, we have to continually review and change the way we do things. This involves improving our efficiency, looking for new markets and find new and innovative ways of doing business using the limited resources we have available to us.
People are our most vital resource.
So getting the best out of our people has to be a a key consideration and something I believe to be every bit as important as micro-economic reform and fiscal consolidation. Historically, women have contributed much time, labour and expertise to agriculture and resource management in this country. However, their contributions are often undervalued and taken for granted or simply been invisible . It is the Government s aim to actively do something about addressing this imbalance in representation and seek out women in farming so that we can draw on their skills and experiences and input into the policy making process. If governments, and organisations such as yours, are to develop the best possible policies and programs, they need access to a broad range of ideas, advice and points of view.