Participants at the workshop (Source: VNA)
Thua Thien-Hue (VNA) – Although
creative industries remain modest in Vietnam, there are certain local
advantages for them to develop in the country, according to a specialist from
Vietnam’s Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA).
Nguyen Thi Bich Thuy, Director of the Research Centre for
Female Labour and Gender under MOLISA’s Institute of Labour Science and Social
Affairs, was speaking at the workshop “Unlocking potential, creating style –
APEC GIFTS (Gendered Innovation for Technology and Science) for Women in the
creative industry”, which was hosted by the Department of Gender Equality of
Chinese Taipei in Hue city, the central province of Thua Thien-Hue, on
September 26.
Thuy said “creative industry” refers to a range of economic
activities that are concerned with the generation and commercialisation of
creativity, ideas, knowledge and information.
There are 12 sub-sectors under the term “creative industry”,
including advertising, architecture, interactive leisure software, the art and
antiques market, design, film and video, publishing, music, the performing
arts, television and radio, software and computer games, and cultural tourism.
She noted that the creative industry generates about 2.2
trillion USD in revenue or 3.3 percent the global GDP. Its revenue even
surpasses the entire GDP of India, 1.9 trillion USD.
The creative industries generated 29.5 million jobs, equivalent
to 1 percent of the world’s active population. They also employ more people
than the automotive industry in the US, Europe and Japan combined.
She said Vietnam has not made the best use of intellectual
property and local small- and medium-sized enterprises spend only
about 0.2 – 0.3 percent of their turnover on technological renovation.
The number of Vietnamese inventions proposed to the World
Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) for recognition equal to 1/1,000 of China
and 1/5,000 of Japan. While the country’s software industry productivity is
worth some 10,000 USD per person each year, the figure is 14,000 – 18,000 USD
in China and 140,000 USD in the US.
However, Thuy also recognised certain advantages of Vietnam, including
the large domestic market. The country has a young population with “commercial”
sensitivity and a high level of digital technology, in addition to the richness
and diversity of regions and culture. Another advantage is that many new
manufacturing industries in the supply chain of the creative industries have
emerged.
Suggesting solutions to developing the creative industries, Thuy said it is
necessary to set up a specialised state management agency along with a number
of creative centres. She also highlighted the need for human resources
training, a supportive infrastructure system, a favourable legal system, and
the capacity to enforce intellectual property and copyright protection.
The workshop “Unlocking potential, creating style – APEC GIFTS for
Women in the creative industry” was a side event of the ongoing 2017 APEC Women
and the Economy Forum in Hue city.
Established in 1989, APEC
comprises 21 economies which account for 39 percent of the world population, 57
percent of the world GDP and 47 percent of the global trade, according to
statistics in 2014.
The APEC Year 2017 is taking
place in Vietnam under the theme “Creating New Dynamism, Fostering a Shared
Future”. The country used to host APEC events in 2006.-VNA