According to the St Vincent de Paul Society’s senior researcher Dr Andy Marks, who gave the keynote address at the Bathurst Diocese annual general meeting on Friday, the Orange community will face many challenges.

Dr Marks said it was important people realise Orange and many other rural areas have been dealing with a range of problems for a long time.

“Industries like retail, manufacturing, farming, mining, haulage and transport are most exposed,” said Dr Marks.

“Taking into account current projections by the Reserve Bank and financial commentators, these are the areas where we expect unemployment to rise.

“This region has lower percentages of professionals than Australia as a whole, and it is people in unskilled positions that are typically the first to be laid off when margins begin to dwindle.”

Dr Marks says Orange is especially vulnerable due to a range of existing conditions.

“The ongoing drought, rising food prices, record increases in the cost of fuel and unprecedented pressures across the housing sector have weakened many regional economies,” he said.

“As such, they are less able to adapt to rapidly changing global conditions.”

“Rural centres like Orange also have a higher proportion of people over the age of 65 than urban areas.

“If we consider that the number of elderly Australians is expected to double in the next 20 years, it is clear that health, housing, transport and aged care facilities will need to undergo a rapid expansion if they are to keep pace.”

Dr Marks said organisations such as St Vincent de Paul would need to be prepared to meet the upsurge in demand for its services in the months and years ahead.