Country Cabinet made its way to the Eyre Peninsula last week, with topics such as desalination, housing and health discussed during the two day tour.
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Ministers from the state government announced initiatives such as a single employer model for GPs and rural generalist doctors and funding for key worker accommodation at Lock.
During the trip, government officials also met with Eyre Peninsula councils, with similar issues topics brought up by the local members.
Cleve District Council mayor Phil Cameron said housing, childcare and health were hot topics during the meeting, all with a focus on recruiting an retaining skilled workers and families to the area.
"We have very few houses here left in Cleve and basically no rental things so we need to look at how we address that," he said.
"We've worked out we're about 50 skilled workers short as a district so that needs to be addressed too.
"Water is another big issue because we know resources are getting scarce and unless it's addressed properly we can't have new industries or new housing developments because there's no water to supply those projects.
"All of those issues work in together because without housing we can't have workers, without healthcare and childcare we can't, and the same with water."
Mr Cameron said while the Eyre Peninsula was a remote and sparse community, it produced some of the state's biggest volume of export products and that needed to be acknowledged.
"Most councils here are looking at the same issues and heading in the same direction," he said.
"That's positive because we can bring that to state and federal government and make it clear they are issues that need to be addressed in rural communities.
"As was said by one of the mayors during the meeting, collaboration between all three tiers of government is key to get the desired outcomes."
Following the week's events, Mr Cameron praised the state government for reinstating the Country Cabinet initiative.
"I think it's good they come out to the country rather than be city centric," he said.
"It gives the country people the chance to ask questions and on the Friday gave councils a chance to have input as well.
"I would've liked more time to discuss specific topics but it's a good chance to have them here on our home turf and give them a better understanding of the regions."
Katie Jackson
Journalist at Stock Journal. Born into a journo family in the state's South East, Katie made the move to the big smoke to join the team in early 2022 after seven years spent at various mastheads in the regions.
Journalist at Stock Journal. Born into a journo family in the state's South East, Katie made the move to the big smoke to join the team in early 2022 after seven years spent at various mastheads in the regions.
