AN advisory group has met with leaders of Ceredigion and Powys councils to discuss ways of boosting the region’s economic growth.

Members of the Growing Mid Wales Economic Advisory Group (EAG) met at the Elan Valley visitor centre to discuss the strategic initiatives of the Mid Wales Growth Deal and collaborate on advancing the region’s economic growth.

Steve Lesbirel, Chair of the EAG said, “We now have a full group consisting of entrepreneurial industry leaders and we look forward together with a passion to help drive the Mid Wales economy forward. Our group plays a key role in providing a strategic and constructive challenge to strengthen proposals and advise on new opportunities for the Growing Mid Wales Board to consider.”

The Economic Advisory Group is an independent body for the Growing Mid Wales Board. Their role is to provide a business voice on the Growth Deal and positively promote the Deal within the Mid Wales business community. The group comprises business leaders with expertise relevant to the Mid Wales region.

Councillor James Gibson-Watt, Leader of Powys County Council, and Councillor Bryan Davies, Leader of Ceredigion County Council, Co-Chairs of the Growing Mid Wales Board said, “We are delighted to work closely with regional business leaders to provide a voice for their sector and share strategic and constructive responses for the Mid Wales Growth Deal.

"The Growth Deal is entering an exciting stage of development which sees programmes and projects moving into the delivery phase, and we therefore need to ensure business representatives help us to strengthen and challenge the Portfolio to have maximum impact on the Mid Wales Economy."

The group had the opportunity to hear more about the Elan Valley Lakes project from project developers, Dŵr Cymru, and take a tour around the site. This is the first project in Mid Wales currently advancing to the final stage of business case development to unlock Mid Wales Growth Deal funding.

The Mid Wales Growth Deal is a capital funding programme investing in large-scale infrastructure projects to support the economic growth of the region.