Chatham-Kent Mayor Randy Hope has been named chair of the Western Ontario Wardens' Caucus.
The WOWC is meant to advocate for the needs and vision for rural Western Ontario to all levels of government.
Hope says they need to continue to work towards bringing the rural sector into the 21st century. "Technology is so important for communities to compete for jobs, agriculture. So we have to be front and centre. A fibre optics system is very expensive, so we need federal and provincial support to make sure we can obtain it."
Hope highlighted the Southwestern Regional Integrated Fibre Technology Network as top priority for 2015.
Hope replaces former Lambton County Warden Todd Case who did not seek reelection as warden in December.