Wednesday, Apr 11 2012 3:37PM

The White House Rural Council hosted a meeting with Native American tribe leaders, experts on agricultural development and other officials to gather information and ideas to help break administrative barriers and explore opportunities for those living in rural communities throughout the country.

The council announced new ways to improve existing programs and funding to help economic growth in rural and tribal communities. The Rural Jobs Accelerator will provide around $15 million to fund projects that promote job creation. Also, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Labor signed a memorandum of understanding to connect with local colleges to provide rural communities with resources and training for Health Information Technology professionals working at hospitals and clinics.

Topics discussed at the roundtable included strategic business planning, affordable housing and other financial factors that are important for agricultural economic growth for rural communities.

The nation's overall economy is dependent on a thriving rural economy, the council noted, while the input from from tribe leaders will help government agencies create new initiatives for economic growth in rural parts of the country.

For further information, check out these sources: The White House Blog