DESPITE being a little late, the Muresk Old Collegians Association (MOCA) believes it has got one of its Christmas wishes.
For the past few months the association had been requesting a meeting with Training and Workforce Development Minister Murray Cowper to discuss the issue of Muresk and the state of tertiary agribusiness education in WA.
On Monday, MOCA president John Hassell and secretary Roy Duncanson got that chance.
Mr Hassell had previously told Farm Weekly the State Government was not addressing agribusiness's tertiary education problems and wanted to meet with Mr Cowper to get an outcome.
Mr Hassell said he was pleased Mr Cowper agreed to meet with MOCA and was happy with how the meeting went.
"It was probably the best discussion we have had with any Minister so far," he said.
"But we still need to see some outcomes."
Mr Hassell said he understood that Mr Cowper had written to agricultural providers across Australia to ask for interest in Muresk.
"He wants the industry to prove they are going to support agribusiness, which is a very encouraging sign," he said.
Leading up to the election in March, Mr Hassell said he hoped the current State Government would commit to tertiary agribusiness education in WA, what its vision is for it and how it proposes to make it come to fruition.
"The fact of the matter is if the government doesn't address this issue, within two years all Western Australians will have to go east to get an agribusiness degree," he said.
Mr Hassell said they were hoping for an announcement from Mr Cowper before the election.
MOCA secretary Mr Duncanson said MOCA had had three meetings with three different ministers in three years and this was the most positive.
"Mr Cowper was the first one that had any clue about agriculture," he said.
"He was also the first Minister to actively listen and not just tell MOCA what was going to happen.
"But the proof will be in the eating."
Mr Duncanson said the State Government still lacked a vision for Muresk but was becoming more aware of the problem and what it meant for WA agriculture.
"He has only been the Minister for a few months but he has already spoken to a lot of the major players, has a good handle on the issue and has sorted out what is going on," he said.
"Whereas Brendon Grylls has been the Muresk member, located in the Central Wheatbelt, for years and he has never communicated with MOCA officially."
Mr Duncanson commended Mr Cowper on his call for industry to become involved but said it was a characteristic move in the agribusiness education debate.
"Every time we point out there is a problem the government calls on industry to do more, but industry won't commit until it knows what the model is and where the government is going," he said.
"Corporates won't invest much in Muresk until they see the prospectus first."
