COVID-19 Socio-Economic Impact on Cultural and Creative Sectors in South-East Europe

Culture plays an important role in identity building, social cohesion, dialogue, reconciliation and it contributes significantly to the economy. Concurrently, culture is instrumental in providing employment, generating income revenue and contributing to the gross domestic product (GDP). A substantial portion of the cultural sector represented by natural and cultural heritage, heritage-based tourism, and cultural and creative industries was affected negatively by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Socio-Economic Impact Assessment of COVID-19 was conducted between April and July 2020 in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia. Methodology consisted of a collection of quantitative and qualitative data through desk reviews, interviews with representatives of the Ministry of Culture and culture sector representatives, and two surveys. While the results obtained from this assessment were not reflective of the complete impact of the pandemic in South-East Europe, they highlighted how these different countries were coping with the crisis.

The implementation of lockdown measures by the governments of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia as a response to the COVID-19 situation in March 2020, resulted in the closure of cultural institutions, cultural and creative industries. In all 4 countries, cultural events and activities were cancelled and suspended, having negative consequences on their economy.

Telecommuting became the new norm for employees of galleries, museums, educational institutions, with some contracts of temporary and volunteer workers getting terminated. Budget cuts and other reductions stung cultural and creative industries, with the loss of revenue not helping with the situation. The majority of creative industry enterprises surveyed showed that they had resources to remain functioning for a few months, but only a few had the resources to remain active indefinitely.

International tourists mainly consider cultural heritage sites as an important factor when choosing travel destinations. The unexpected closure of these sites, museums and suspension of cultural events, unfortunately caused a reduction in international tourism. In Montenegro, a 62,7% fall in international arrivals was recorded in March and an estimated 80% annual decline if recovery was to be delayed. These devastatingly high figures brought down income usually generated from tickets, souvenir shops and other services. Also, the vital conservation and restoration works at heritage sites got disrupted by this cutback in financing.

An accelerated digital transformation ensued during the lockdown period due to the inability to access different cultural spaces and activities in person. Access to culture as an essential mitigating response to the crisis had to be through various online tools and platforms. Cultural institutions and industries in South-East Europe adapted to the situation by initiating and improving digitization of cultural content, goods and services. These solutions made people manage business activities online, digitize collections, and organize virtual tours and exhibitions. An online 3D version of the National Gallery of Arts in Albania http://www.galeriakombetare.gov.al could be accessed for exploration and learning.

To keep up with the rapid changes in communication, cultural institutions had to resort to new ways of communicating with their audience. Online communication platforms such as social networks came in handy to promote cultural activity and to boost more interaction with followers. The government of Serbia launched the digitalnasolidarnost.gov.rs portal, “Coronavirus: digitization to support citizens and the economy”, to provide information on all free platforms, tools for learning and working from home as well as free books, courses, films, music, television and cultural content for the duration of the pandemic.

Arts and culture have always been an important way to connect, even more with the advent of the lockdown restrictions. With children learning from home, cultural institutions alternatively facilitated engagement through online learning. In collaboration with educational institutions, galleries, museums and theatres developed and provided educational materials online with free access. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, “The Secret Life of the Museum”, the first book for children about the Museum of Contemporary Art of Republika Srpska, was released online free of charge in 3 different languages.

Most governments had to step in and assist the cultural sector suffering losses due to the COVID-19 situation. Financial measures such as tax and contribution exemptions, financial support for cultural projects and subventions for employees were set to help struggling cultural institutions and industries. The government of Montenegro co-financed activities of 145 projects in the field of cultural and artistic creation that are in the function of public interest and protection of socioeconomic interests of unemployed artists and cultural experts.

The cultural and creative sectors of South-East Europe countries took a hit from the unexpected pandemic. COVID-19 indicated the necessity of technology and digital platforms in promoting and disseminating cultural content. The crisis further alerted governments to take action in fostering the creative industry as a way to face the socio-economic challenges. The situation has been a wake-up call to rethink business models and improve the digital infrastructure for substantial digital media consumption.