IN?RECENT?YEARS an increasing number of calls have been made for the cultural industries to be recognized for their foreign exchange-earning potential.
While music may be the artform which comes to mind most readily, the cultural or creative industries cover several forms of expression.
“In short, the term cultural or creative industries describes the economic activities of artists, arts enterprises and cultural entrepreneurs, for-profit as well as not-for-profit, in the production, distribution, and consumption of film, television, literature, music, theatre, dance, visual arts, masquerade, broadcasting, multimedia, animation, fashion and so on,” said a 2006 study on The Cultural Industries In CARICOM: Trade And Development Challenges prepared for the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery.
The study went on to note that there are several challenges which hinder the development of this sector, including weak management and inadequate information systems, shortage of skilled personnel, low levels of training, poor manufacturing and service facilities, and uncompetitive packaging and branding.
Also of concern were weak marketing and distribution channels, high levels of copyright infringement and piracy, and weak rights management and collection of royalties.
Bias
“There also tends to be an historical, institutional, and commercial bias against indigenous content in the home market that marginalizes and limits local entrepreneurship, investment, and market development,” the report stated.
It was also noted that Caribbean governments have been slow to dedicate resources to institutions and policies targeting creative industries, both at the regional and national level.
“There are limited incentives regimes for the creative industries and these are needed to mitigate the vulnerabilities of the sector and to encourage the investment required to maximize the potential socio-economic contribution to the Caribbean,” it suggested.
Similarly, the chief executive officer of the Copyright Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers Inc. (COSCAP), Erica Smith, noted in the August 9, 2010 BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY that although Barbados and the Caribbean generally are well known for the richness of their cultural diversity and can boast international commercial success, there are some limitations in the translation from theory to optimising opportunities. Among the challenges:
the inability to access finance;
the informality of participants coupled with the high level of part-time and seasonal activity which often leads to lack of professionalism;
low levels of creativity and innovation – if it works, the strategy seems to be not to fix it.
Risk-aversion seems to characterise our cultural sectors, with few people willing to take chances on new designs and approaches and little investment in skill development;
lack of appreciation for intellectual property rights in spite of the largely intangible nature of the business – there are very few people who use written contracts or are aware of their rights and as a result, participants are unable to truly capitalise on their property;
scarcity of cultural industry business skill and market information which in turn makes it all the more difficult to access financing, develop viable business strategies and develop a long-term perspective.
Smith added that there were other factors which hinder further development, notably continuing prejudice against careers in the arts, probably due to a low level of understanding of the scope of the cultural industries and the treatment of the arts as a hobbyist-only activity.
“In fact, these problems are iterative in the sense that the previously mentioned challenges reinforce this prejudice. There is also the persistent failure at the level of policymaking to truly make the cultural industries a priority and to take full advantage of the inter-sector linkages that may be developed,” she said.
Smith noted that while the cultural industries offered tremendous opportunities for Barbados, there must be serious groundwork in order to ensure long-term sustainability.
The September 14, 2010 DAILY NATION reported that Barbados was moving to open up a new economic sector – “a cultural industry that would take its place alongside tourism, financial services, manufacturing, agriculture and construction”.
“The cultural industry is really the next frontier as far as we are concerned in the Government. We are going to provide opportunities for people who operate within the environment to practise their craft and hone their skills in an environment that’s supported by Government, and also with the enabling environment to give them the incentives to pursue their goals,” said Minister of Culture and Community Development Steve Blackett.
The minister pinpointed duty-free concessions to artistes, designers and producers of arts and crafts as some of the incentives contained in the proposed Cultural Industries Bill.
Foreign direct investment
In addition, it would offer benefits to foreign movie and television producers. Just as important, Invest Barbados, the statutory arm of Government that seeks to attract foreign direct investment to the country, would link arms with the Ministry of Culture to make a direct appeal to foreign filmmakers so they could use Barbados as a “shooting location” for major films.
“All of the inputs that would generate the kind of energy and infuse the kind of life into cultural industries are what we are talking about,” Blackett said.
Although the minister did not give an estimate of the number of jobs the industry would create, he said producers, directors, lighting specialists, technicians, sound and stage hands, “all the jobs you would see existing in North America and Europe, you would see those jobs coming to the fore with the development of a vibrant cultural industry”.
In a presentation to the House of Assembly earlier that year on the Policy and Draft Legislation for Development of the Cultural Industries, Blackett declared that he was signalling the end to waiting and that “the year 2010 marks the transition from planning to implementation, the year for creation of the enabling environment essential for stimulation of cultural industries development in Barbados.”
However, the long-awaited legislation is yet to be passed in Parliament.