Creative Economy: A Feasible Development Option

8.4 Policy directions8Policy strategies for the creative industriesCritical areas where developing countries need newpolicy initiatives in order to boost their creative economiesinclude the provision of infrastructure, the provision offinance and investment, the creation of institutional mechanisms,an appropriate regulatory framework, the developmentof export markets, the establishment of creativeclusters and a mechanism for effective data-collection measuresand analysis.8.4.1 Provision of infrastructureIt is a fundamental function of government to createand maintain the conditions under which the economic,social and cultural life of the citizens can prosper. Thisresponsibility takes shape through the ways in which thepublic sector provides both tangible and intangible infrastructure.Given the predominance of the market economy asthe basic form of economic organization in the world today,the types of infrastructure required are those institutionsthat enable markets to function effectively but at the sametime to protect and promote the public interest. AsUNCTAD puts it in The Least Developed Countries Report 2004:In implementing post-liberal development strategies,public policies in LDCs should use market-supportingmechanisms aimed at market creation, market developmentand market acceleration. These policies must notsimply provide the right price incentives, but also createthe right institutions and the infrastructure necessaryfor a modern market economy to function properly(UNCTAD, 2004:xi-xii).The infrastructure needs of the emerging creativeeconomies of developing countries arise at all points in thevalue chain from initial creative production (which may beundertaken on a small scale at the local level or on a largerscale in towns and cities) right through to marketing andretailing. As with any other industry, the creative industriesneed affordable access to appropriate space in which to workand to live, transportation, and distribution facilities. Thedispersed but interdependent nature of creativity in the creative-industrysector may make the provision of these basicinfrastructure needs more costly and complicated than forthe development of more traditional heavy and light industry.The overlap with the private infrastructure needs of theemployees and the small scale of the needs for the individualindustry may, on the other hand, balance this cost. The promotionof creative clusters is one way to overcome this costbut it may not carry the social and cultural advantages oflodging creative industries within existing communities.Moreover, the problem of lack of infrastructure relates particularlyto gaps in the supply chain for inputs into creativeprocesses, inadequacy of distribution networks for effectivemarketing of products, and lack of institutional supportmechanisms.One infrastructure requirement particular to thecreative industries is the need for access to information andcommunication technology (ICT). Access to informationneeded to boost business development is in many regions ofthe world still far from universal and will never be so withoutconscious public sector efforts to expand access. There isno doubt, however, that access to ICT, in terms of identificationof market opportunities, training, innovations,networking and sales, is a significant factor in the developmentof the viability of small business units. Access to ICTprovides a link between education and commerce and assistsin turning knowledge into marketable products. Facilitatingthe movement of workers is another key issue for the developmentof creative industries, especially in those industriesthat entail a collective creative process (see chapter 7).Like any other industry, creative industries are onlytruly sustainable if they contribute to building the assetresource base. This they can do only through the integrityand authenticity of their products. In the longer run, the creativeindustries depend on the vitality and strength of thecultural sector and the investments in cultural capital(knowledge and heritage). The sustainability of the creativeindustries therefore depends on the safeguarding of culturalcapital and the development of the cultural asset resourcebase. Hence, comprehensive cultural asset management is aprerequisite for sustained growth in the creative-industriessector and, in a wider perspective, for sustainable economicdevelopment and vibrant community life. It is thereforenecessary to maintain the principle that cultural assets areintergenerational capital and that their viability may legitimatelybe sustained by public investment.214 CREATIVE ECONOMY REPORT 2010