The modernization of the delivery of rural services means the province is reorganizing and centralizing agricultural services. The Virden MASC, Manitoba Agriculture offices as well as the Natural Resources (conservation) are expected to close to the public as of April 1.However, Virden Petroleum Branch will remain just as it is but Waskada office will run through the Virden location.
Agriculture and Resource Development Minister Blaine Pedersen made the announcement in early January 2021, indicating the province was catching up to what their customers – farmers, fishermen, forestry and Indigenous people want.
While the Virden’s Provincial building will remain a work place for staff, elsewhere, a number of leased offices representing a yearly cost of about $700,000 will be shuttered. Staff will work from home and report to centralized offices. These include offices in Hamiota, Waskada, Souris, Shoal Lake and Birtle – 21 offices in total. However, Minister Pedersen says this isn’t about saving money and he’s adamant that no staff will lose their jobs.
The portfolio broadly includes agriculture, forestry, fisheries, natural resources, oil and minerals. The Agriculture and Resource Development (ARD) department is hiring research scientists and a deputy assistant minister for production stewardship. The plan is to beef up online services and decrease in-person service locations for farmers and natural resource needs.
“Farmers are technologically advanced,” says Pedersen, adding, “MASC has over 50 per cent doing seeded acreage reports online.”
The Provincial office building located downtown on Wellington St. currently serves agriculture and 4H on the third floor a staff of three; on the central floor, MASC staff of four, plus field staff, assist with farmland tax rebates, crop insurance and crop reports, and ag-related lending.
The wildlife natural resource office within the Wellington St. building is included in the changes. As of April, wildlife, fisheries, forestry and natural resources in-personal service will take place out of five integrated resource management offices – one in Brandon and others located in the northern lake areas of the province.
Due to the COVID-19 health orders, the Government offices were closed to the public for most of 2020. Staff in the Virden government building were accessible to the public by phone, email and appointment-based in person assistance. Even that will change as of April 2021, when the Virden office will no longer be open to the public at all – not by phone or any other means.
People who need in-person help or to pick up a form will no longer travel to Virden, Birtle, Souris, Hamiota, Waskada or the 25 other offices that they can currently access. They will drive a distance for face-to-face help and use the internet to download forms.
Virden office already offered a wide variety of agricultural services whereas some offices such as those in Hamiota or Souris did not carry the full slate of ag services.
Going forward a full slate of Agricultural services will be available through 10 service centres, Brandon being the closest for the southwest corner of Manitoba.
The changes are underway and Minister Pedersen says, “There’s been some real excitement. People are looking forward to new challenges.”
Staff can continue living within their communities, although some may need to drive to a distant office as needed, possibly once per week. He says, “Certainly, there will be some uncertainty with some staff as they get new assignments or take on new challenges.” He says there will be ever more research available to producers.
“Twenty years ago, we had lots of people walking into the offices, wanting information on insecticides … Traffic to our websites has increased exponentially over the years. Farmers can sit in their home office and access our website.
“Meeting the needs of our clients with professional knowledge, current research and data, connections to appropriate links, and timely, unbiased information has always been a priority for our department,” said Pedersen.
.
