Creative Economy: A Feasible Development Option

come obstacles faced by poor communities, designers andSMEs in entering the value chains in order to access globalmarkets. ITC has been examining positive and negativeexperiences, with the aim of assisting developing countriesto link designers and retailers/distributors in fashion marketswith businesses with a view to developing win-winsupply-chain models.In the context of UNCTAD XII, held in Ghana inApril 2008, UNCTAD invited ITC to organize a free dialoguein collaboration with the African Federation ofFashion Designers and other relevant institutions andNGOs. Entitled “From fashion to African communitiesand the Millennium Development Goals”, 26 it provided aforum for addressing issues related to the fashion industryand exploring business possibilities offered by ethical fashionfor African creators and communities. The dialogueidentified concrete proposals for strengthening the productionof socially and environmentally sustainable rawmaterials with a view to ensuring that value addition takesplace in Africa.In September 2009, ITC organized its “EthicalFashion Catwalk Show” in the context of the WorldCongress on Organic Cotton, which was held in Interlakenwith organizational support from the Swiss Association forInternational Development. The aim was to demonstratethe potential of organic cotton as a fashion material andshowcase the glamour of well-known African andEuropean designers. In ITC’s view, the market for organiccotton is experiencing rapid growth, but it needs a moreglamorous image so that it can break out of the “ethical”niche. 27 ITC also promoted a “Fashion Award inRomania” in December 2009. Garments have long been acrucial and successful sector of the Romanian economy,accounting for some 15 per cent of the country’s exports,and there is a strong potential for Romania to become aninternational fashion reference, with its own creativity,brands and retail chains.In collaboration with the Netherlands’ Centre forPromotion of Imports from Developing Countries, ITClaunched an interactive web portal in March 2010. CalledArtisanconnect, it seeks to connect artisans and experts increative and indigenous crafts and provide them with a platformfor sharing their experiences and information. Whileinitial content was provided by ITC, the success of the portal,which is based on Web 2.0 technology, will depend on itsusers who can easily add or modify content. This new webportal provides information on markets, design and productiondevelopment, materials and techniques, and projects. Italso hosts a database of over 1,500 organizations, glossaries,a database of events and useful links. The site was constructedso that users can highlight or share their expertise, sharedocuments and expand their networks. The aim is to encouragethe exchange of information about craft markets, newtechnologies, designs and events, which has been scarce sofar, particularly for French-speaking users. The portal isavailable in English, French and Spanish at www.artisanconnect.net.ITC has also devoted an issue of its quarterly publication,International Trade Forum, 28 to explore the potential ofcreative industries in developing countries. Through contributionsfrom international commentators, it examinedsuch themes as the impact of globalization, technology anddigitization and the promotion and financing of creativeindustries in emerging economies. It also highlighted theopportunities created through engagement with the corporatesector and creative industries, such as film and fashionin developing countries, and showed how the design industryis having a considerable impact on how cultural heritageand tradition are transformed into products ranging fromhousehold goods and fashion items to solutions for healthcare and new media and entertainment. ITC emphasizesthat technology is creating new opportunities foreconomies in both the North and the South, and thatcountries will need the right policy mix and strategies tooptimize the job- and wealth-creating opportunities thatthey present.9The international dimension of creative-industries policy26 Further details available from http://www.unctadxii.org/en/Programme/Creative-Africa/Free-dialogue--From-fashion-to-African-communities-and-the-Millennium-Development-Goals.27 ITC (2009). Press release.28 ITC (2009). “Creative Industries an Engine for Growth”.CREATIVE ECONOMY REPORT 2010249