THE ART OF DEVELOPMENT – investing in the creative economy

Last Updated on Thursday, 20 September 2012 03:04

The Pacific islands have traditionally been seen as having limited economic potential.  With a minor manufacturing base and a reliance on tourism, donor aid and basic agricultural commodity exports, island economies have long been challenged by geography, labour skills and tiny economies-of-scale.

But are we missing something?

The creative economy – based on art, music, film, media etc – has often been overlooked as a driver of economic growth, but is known to have an important knock-on effect on tourism and broader investment.

PiPP’s latest discussion paper looks into the need for Pacific governments and development partners to prioritise arts and culture.

A healthy arts and culture environment is fundamental to nation building. There are opportunities to expand economic activity through tourism and providing opportunities to exhibit and market creative works in metropolitan countries. The internet has a role to play, but is no silver bullet. Information sharing is vital in order for economic realities of the creative sector to be realised.

Commercialisation comes with risks, however, better policies will be required to protect rights associated with ownership of cultural knowledge, particularly with respect to asserting authenticity.

The full discussion paper can be downloaded here.

PiPP will bring together some creative minds on Saturday 7 July, when it hosts a panel discussion forum on building the creative economy alongside the Festival of Pacific Arts currently underway in Honiara, Solomon Islands.

For more information contact us at pipp@pacificpolicy.org or +678 29 842.


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

pps-2013-04-15 This week on Pacific Politics: PiPPtalks - MSG Secretariat Director General Peter Forau discusses the organisation's identity and purpose; Dan McGarry looks at the West Papuan independence movement's long road to freedom; a photo essay on the MSG's Eminent Persons Group and much more....

PiPP is pleased to present its latest tool in understanding the state of mobile phone and internet use in Vanuatu. This infographic encapsulates the key findings from our 2011 study of social and economic effects of telecoms in Vanuatu. Please contact us for a printed copy or click here for the downloadable graphic.

graffitti-small-size-2013-05-24

Your Say

"We need to protect the next 50 years (with action) in the next five years. Thats the urgency" - Tony de Brum

We were not taught to have constructive dialogue in our homes...the real “culprit” is our communal ways. - Semi Pauu

Whilst we're part of the Pacific regional solution for asylum seekers/refugees, we are more and more becoming asylums and refugees in our own region because of climate change. - Jacinta Manua

By talking abt it won't help anyone it is time to do something about environmental issues. - Zoya Rahiman