DPU's Alessio Kolioulis part of a team exploring creative industries as drivers of development

The project is implemented by GIZ and the Goethe-Institut and takes places across seven cities in Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Senegal and South Africa. DPU's Alessio Kolioulis has contributed to the project as an economist.

The cultural and creative industries create jobs for disadvantaged population groups and make an important contribution of around three per cent towards the global economy. Their innovative power shines out into other branches of the economy and they are a pioneer for tomorrow’s world of work. This gives them the potential to drive development inclusively and in the long term. Despite the economic and social potential of the cultural and creative industries and the large number of creative talents in Africa and the Middle East, there are often no opportunities to fully exhaust make use of them there. For example, there is a lack of governmental support, needs-based training opportunities, strong interest groups, and suitable financing models and market access.

"Cultural and creative industries – drivers of development" address diverse stakeholders ranging from individual freelancers and business owners to organizations and platform events operating in the cultural and creative industries. The most targeted sectors are Music, Fashion, Design, and Animation/VR. Alessio contributed to the research design and analytical framework, helped with the design of an industry survey that received over 600 high quality responses, compiled country and city profiles and co-led the data analysis.

The study provides empirical evidence on the impact of Covid-19 on the cultural and creative industries in the Global South and is helping to formulate recommendations for suitable response actions. This research was designed by VibeLab, a consulting agency specialized on empowering creative communities in cities across the world.

More information: https://www.giz.de/en/worldwide/76566.html