The OECD Rural Development Policy Conference, National Prosperity through Modern Rural Policy: Competitiveness and well-being in rural regions took place on 19–21 May, 2015 in Memphis, United States. 

The conference was hosted by the White House Rural Council with the support of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and Mexico’s Secretariat for Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development. 

Objective

This conference marked the 10^th meeting of the world’s leading policy officials, international experts and representatives from the private sector for discussing best practices for rural areas. This meeting took stock of the evolution and progress made in rural development since the first conference held in 2002. 

Who attends?

The conference gathered together a wide range of leading international and national experts on rural development. Building upon the New Rural Paradigm framework; Promoting Growth in all Regions; and Rural-Urban Partnerships, policy makers and high-level officials both from OECD and non-OECD countries discussed modern rural policies, and how the implementation of such policies contributes to national growth and well-being. 

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Previous conferences in the series

• Rural-Urban partnerships: an integrated approach to economic development, Bologna, Italy (2013)
• Innovation and Modernising the Rural Economy, Krasnoyarsk, Russia (2012)
• Developing Rural Policies to Meet the Needs of a Changing World, Québec, Canada (2009)
• Innovative Service Delivery- Meeting the Challenges of Rural Regions, Cologne, Germany (2008)
• Innovative Rural Regions: The role of human capital and Technology, Caceres, Spain (2007)
• Investment Priorities for Rural Development, Edinburgh, UK (2006)
• Designing and Implementing Rural Policies, Oaxaca, Mexico (2005)
• New Approaches to Rural Policy: Lessons from Around the World, Warrenton, Virginia, US (2004)
• The Future of Rural Policy, Siena, Italy (2002)