The purpose of this subchapter is to establish a regional rural collaborative investment program
(1) to provide rural regions with a flexible investment vehicle, allowing for local control with Federal oversight, assistance, and accountability;
(2) to provide rural regions with incentives and resources to develop and implement comprehensive strategies for achieving regional competitiveness, innovation, and prosperity;
(3) to foster multisector community and economic development collaborations that will optimize the asset-based competitive advantages of rural regions with particular emphasis on innovation, entrepreneurship, and the creation of quality jobs;
(4) to foster collaborations necessary to provide the professional technical expertise, institutional capacity, and economies of scale that are essential for the long-term competitiveness of rural regions; and
(5) to better use Department of Agriculture and other Federal, State, and local governmental resources, and to leverage those resources with private,
nonprofit">
nonprofit, and philanthropic investments, in order to achieve measurable community and economic prosperity, growth, and sustainability.