BUSHnet program has attracted more than 12,000 visitors since going on-line in August

28/12/99
Primary Industry Minister Monty House said the innovative BUSHnet program had attracted more than 12,000 visitors to its web site since going on-line in August.
Mr House said there was a high level of interest in the program which was providing more than $100,000 to help rural communities benefit from the latest information and communications technology.
"BUSHnet is part of the Progress Rural WA initiative and incorporates the rural web site and two funding schemes for communities to develop their own web sites," he said.
"The web site is proving to be an excellent resource for rural Western Australians on the Internet and will hopefully become the first port of call for all rural information seekers.

"In the past four months, there have been up to 130 daily visits to the site with people spending an average of seven minutes on each section."
Mr House said the latest developments to the web site included an improved news room to help users find out the latest news on Progress Rural WA activities.
The news room was divided into three sections. The Minister's Desk held all the latest Ministerial news and press releases about Progress Rural WA, Project news had information about participants in the programs from a regional and rural perspective, and The Globe actively sourced news on community development and rural leadership from around the world.
The Minister said another addition was the Related site, which had been developed to provide rural users from around the world with a 'one-stop shop' for information about rural leadership and community development.
The site had been organised into Australian links, global links and an interactive discussion forum that was being used by rural people from around the world to discuss topics, exchange ideas and form relationships.

Media contact: Julie Cole 9481 2044