The Alberta government will remarry agriculture and rural development into a single ministry, the province announced Wednesday.
Premier Ed Stelmach announced a reorganization of several ministries and a cabinet shuffle Wednesday after winning a substantially larger majority government March 3 in his first general election as premier.
George Groeneveld, Stelmach’s minister of agriculture and food before the election, has been reappointed to what’s to be called the ministry of agriculture and rural development.
In December 2006, after becoming premier, Stelmach — a former provincial ag minister in the Ralph Klein government — had decoupled what was then called the ministry of agriculture, food and rural development. Rural and regional development became the responsibility of the ministry of employment, immigration and industry.
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Among other retooled ministries announced Wednesday, the employment, immigration and industry ministry sheds its “industry” focus. Attracting investment to the province will become the task of the ministry of international and intergovernmental relations, while the ministry of finance and enterprise takes over responsibility for economic development.
Other new ministries include housing and urban affairs, aboriginal relations, culture and community spirit, infrastructure and transportation. The last two ministries were previously one department but will now focus separately on the province’s public facilities and road network, respectively.
