Creative Economy: A Feasible Development Option

Ten key messagesThis policy-oriented report examines anumber of issues relating to the creative economyand its development dimension. Insteadof presenting an overview of the full report, asummary of the 10 key messages is presentedat the initial part of the report to provide asynthesis of the main findings and policyrecommendations. The intention is to presenta quick glance at the key issues, and facilitateinformed, results-oriented policymaking.I. In 2008, the eruption of the worldfinancial and economic crisis provoked a dropin global demand and a contraction of 12 percent in international trade. However, worldexports of creative goods and services continuedto grow, reaching $592 billion in 2008— more than double their 2002 level, indicatingan annual growth rate of 14 per cent oversix consecutive years. This is a confirmationthat the creative industries hold great potentialfor developing countries that seek to diversifytheir economies and leapfrog into one of themost dynamic sectors of the world economy.II. The world economy has been receivinga boost from the increase in South-Southtrade. The South’s exports of creative goods tothe world reached $176 billion in 2008,accounting for 43 per cent of totalcreative industries trade with an annualgrowth rate of 13.5 per cent during the 2002-2008 period. This indicates a robustdynamism and developing countries’ fastgrowingmarket share in world markets forcreative industries. South-South trade of creativegoods amounted to nearly $60 billion, anastonishing growth rate of 20 per cent overthe period. The trend is also confirmed in thecase of creative services, whose share ofSouth-South trade grew to $21 billion in2008 from $7.8 billion in 2002. In the lightof this positive evolution, developing countriesare highly encouraged to include creativegoods in their list of products and to concludenegotiations under the Global System ofTrade Preferences in order to give even moreimpetus to the expansion of South-Southtrade in this promising area.III. A right mix of public policies andstrategic choices are essential for harnessingthe socio-economic potential of the creativeeconomy for development gains. For developingcountries, the starting point is to enhancecreative capacities and identify creative sectorswith greater potential through articulatedcross-cutting policies. Efforts should beoriented towards the functioning of a“creative nexus” able to attract investors, buildcreative entrepreneurial capacities, offer betteraccess and infrastructure to modern ICTtechnologies in order to benefit from globaldigital convergence, and optimize the tradepotential of their creative products in bothdomestic and international markets. A positivespillover effect will certainly be reflectedin higher levels of employment generation,increased opportunities for strengtheninginnovation capabilities and a high quality ofcultural and social life in those countries.IV. Policy strategies to foster thedevelopment of the creative economy mustrecognize its multidisciplinary nature — itseconomic, social, cultural, technological andenvironmental linkages. Key elements in anypackage to shape a long-term strategy for thecreative economy should involve concertedinter-ministerial actions to ensure that nationalinstitutions, a regulatory framework andfinancing mechanisms are in place to supportTen Key MessagesCREATIVE ECONOMY REPORT 2010xxiii