THE growth of the Philippine creative industries will further prosper with more open trade and investment relations and cooperation with partner countries, especially in Asean, according to Rafaelita Aldaba, undersecretary of the Department of Trade and Industry.
In her speech at the Philippines-Indonesia Creative Economy Roundtable in Pasay City yesterday, Aldaba said the Philippines’ proposal for the creation of an Asean creative economy working group, is one of the new streams of competitiveness in the development of the Asean Community Post- 2025, a move that will further integrate the region.
Aldaba said the working group aims to provide a platform for Asean member-states to collaborate and exchange best practices towards a more robust regional approach for the growing creative economy sector.
In particular, Aldaba highlighted the Philippines’ cooperation with Indonesia on creative economy which was formalized through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed in 2022 in his state visit of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Indonesia.
The MOU, the first agreement creative economy the Philippines has signed with a trading partner, seeks to foster a collaborative environment between the Philippines and Indonesia, nurture creative talent through educational exchange and capacity building, as well as share best practices and knowledge in developing the Philippine creative industries.
Aldaba said the Philippines and Indonesia share a similar stage of development, making collaboration a strategic opportunity.
She cited the Global Innovation Index where Indonesia ranked 22nd while the Philippines ranked 10th place in creative goods exports.
Aldaba said on creative services, Indonesia ranked 68th while the Philippines ranked 49th on the Nation Brand Index, which measures the global standing of 60 nations based on six categories, people, governance, exports, culture, tourism and immigration and investment, Indonesia ranked 44th while the Philippines ranked 48th.
“By partnering, we can leverage our strengths towards building a more connected, complementary and vibrant creative industries in the Philippines,” Aldaba said.
In 2023 alone, the sector accounted for 7 percent of the Philippines’ gross domestic product, with over 7 million Filipinos finding meaningful work within the sector.
The Philippines currently hosts three United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization- designated creative Cities: Baguio for crafts and folk arts; Cebu for design, and Iloilo City, for gastronomy.
The Philippines is working for the inclusion of Quezon City for film.
Aldaba said the Creative Cities Program currently supports 62 Philippine cities in implementing creative industries projects in their localities.
