More than 200 community leaders from across regional and rural Victoria gathered for the inaugural Regional Futures Summit in Bendigo.
Members of the Shepparton community were invited along to the summit to speak about how refugees and asylum seekers had contributed positively to the Goulburn Valley.
Shepparton Ethnic Council community development officer Thon Thon shared his journey from Sudan to Shepparton as well as his experience working in the community.
The Regional Futures Summit was created by the Victorian Government as a way of helping regional and rural Victorians gain the same access to quality services and job opportunities as their metropolitan counterparts. The summit included guest speakers from a range of backgrounds such as health experts, academics and leading demographers.
Victorian Regional Development Minister Jaala Pulford said the summit was about working together to ensure that the government retained and supported current populations and attracted new families and businesses. She said it was also important to promote opportunities in regional Victoria.
“Regional Victoria is a great place to live, work and invest,” she said. “The summit was about how we showcase regional Victoria to the world — to potential visitors, residents and investors.”
Article and image courtesy Shepparton News
