Understanding Wales’ Future

Understanding Wales’ Future complements the Programme for Government and will help drive delivery over the course of the next four and a half years. It is not an attempt to forecast the future: instead it provides a stock-take of Wales’ assets, set against a backdrop of global trends that will drive change in the future.

The analysis highlights Wales’ evident strengths:

• We have an open and competitive economy, which is an integral part of the UK and European market;
• We have a vital sense of national identity and cultural heritage;
• And we are well-placed to seize the opportunities that our natural environment and resources have to offer.

It is also realistic about the structural challenges we have to deal with:

• The range of problems linked to poverty - which require continued and concerted action if we are to make a big difference to people’s life chances;
• Our economy’s ability to attract people and investment - with the right infrastructure, workforce and locations;
• And the risks posed by climate change - which could have serious implications for Wales’ future.

With severe constraints on our budget, it is all the more important to be clear about where we should invest our resources to achieve sustainable results for the people of Wales. Understanding Wales’ Future is an honest assessment of our relative position, and the analysis contained in this publication is intended to help us to deliver significant, measurable, improvements in the longer term prospects of people living in this country.