Development of creative industries for the diversity of cultural expressions-strengthening the sustainability of creative industries in Lao PDR
The present project builds on the initiative “Creative industries development for the diversity of cultural expressions - Strengthening the sustainability of creative industries in Lao PDR” implemented in 2012-2013 with funding from the Republic of Korea. Under the 2012-2013 project, a very detailed baseline study of the cultural industries in Lao PDR was produced as well as a roadmap for the development of the culture sector through a multi-stakeholder consultation. The consultation highlighted the need for increased communication, networking and collaboration among all stakeholders, within the public sector and between the public sector and the civil society. The project also enabled the creation of a special ministerial committee for the implementation of the 2005 Convention and the development of cultural and creative industries (CCIs).
Drawing upon the past initiatives and considering that the cultural industries remain segmented in the country, the proposed activity is expected to contribute to improving internal collaboration which in turn will develop a good governance for culture and enhance the quality and diversity of Lao’s cultural goods and services for the domestic as well as international markets. Moreover, the knowledge management will facilitate information sharing concerning various legal and administrative frameworks developed by the government that are sometimes difficult for the civil society to grasp.
General Aim:
The overall goal of this project is to contribute to building a good governance for culture through supporting the development of knowledge management systems and communication and networking mechanisms among representatives of various government ministries, civil society actors and the private sector of the cultural and creative industries in order to strengthen the culture sector as a whole.
A cultural hub was set-up to further develop the CCI sector.
The workshop on Strengthening Networking and Knowledge Management Systems for Culture and Creative Industries in Lao PDR was organized from 18 to 20 September 2017 in Vientiane with 64 participants from various departments, ministries and CSOs. The workshop achieved its objectives. It reactivated public-private partnerships for the CCI sector; the cooperation across the ministries/departments was enhanced; and a workplan to finish the UNESCO 2005 Convention Quadrennial Periodic Report was developed. The planning process and the internal consultations among different stakeholders towards completion of the periodic report proved to be a good exercise to refresh the commitments and ownership from various stakeholders and to increase the understanding of the Convention. It also stimulated reflection on the requirements to build a strong CCI sector in the country. The workshop also confirmed that a Cultural Hub was welcomed and perceived as useful by the different stakeholders.
Subsequently, in line with the agreed action plan, two internal consultation meetings were convened by the leader of the working team, Mr Viengeo Souksavatdy, Deputy-Director of the Heritage Department, in September and October 2017. The meetings allowed the working team to verify and compile additional information to be integrated in the report.
From the CSOs side, the identified partner STELLA is fully on board. Stella has successfully set up the physical culture hub in October 2017.The physical hub was not an expected output of this project, but the partners felt it was necessary in the context of Lao PDR. It will be used for stakeholders’ exchanges as well as special events (seminars, emerging artists’ fair, capacity-building events). The hub will be officially launched on the third week of January 2018.
The framework for the Virtual hub was designed. It includes practical information on CCI such as profiles of all the active CSOs companies, laws and resources, and the steps on obtaining a legal status for a CCI company.
STELLA has also finalized the workplan for the series of capacity-building workshops for 2018 that include, for example, an emerging artist fair, introduction to laws related to CCI, and CCI management and finance workshops.