Maroc - NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 23/Oct 07:52

Unleashing the creative industry

Rubadiri Victor The budget 2025/2026 is, in many ways, one of the most progressive in recent memory, addressing the green economy, agriculture, marginalised groups, the working class, young families and first-time homeowners. However, the creative industries remain a blind spot, continuing a trend of political and institutional neglect that spans generations. In this context, two short sentences were allocated to the creative sector in the national budget speech, with a few accompanying items buried in budget documents. These gestures fall well short of international standards or the local reality. They fail to grasp the policy, institutional and legislative enablers that underpin thriving creative economies worldwide, or to recognise the vast assets TT possesses in music, carnival, fashion and film that could be major foreign exchange earners. As a result, an assembly of artists has requested a closed-door post-budget summit with the government to address this gap in understanding and action. Let’s first examine the two budget lines devoted to the sector: "The orange economy/creative industries – We will expand our cultural industries through a Creative Value-Chain Fund supporting film, fashion, design and music. Enhanced IP protection and duty concessions will empower creatives and generate thousands of jobs." Unfortunately, few in the sector know what this even means. The previous administration dismantled FilmTT, FashionTT and MusicTT, replacing them with a new entity tied to Eximbank and created with zero stakeholder consultation. The mechanics of how this new model will work remain unclear. Worse, these agencies were underfunded for over a decade; film grant funding once fell to just $1 million, not even enough to cover catering on a small foreign production. [caption id="attachment_1186157" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Rubadiri Victor -[/caption] TT has consistently underperformed in monetising its creative sector, primarily due to the absence of foundational international best-practice enablers – policy, legislation and institutions. Without these, unlocking the sector’s vast potential is near impossible. For context, the UK began retooling its economy around the creative industries by 1999, and by 2014, the sector was earning over £230.4 million per day. Locally, adopting the proposed creative sector masterplan could yield $3 billion in under three years, thanks to massive, underutilised engines in music, heritage, film, carnival and design. Our proposed interventions: 1. National 'buy-local' campaign Led by the creative sector and local celebrities in sports and arts, this campaign would stimulate economic activity, preserve foreign exchange and boost local brands. A quick win – open public squares every second weekend for craft fairs and farmers' markets, paired with local performers, managed by municipal authorities. This would reignite community economies. 2. Enact local content policy Revive the local content chamber and complete the national local content policy. Most critically, pass the 50 per cent local broadcast quota legislation. Global success stories in film, TV and music, from Canada to Nigeria, have relied on such quotas. TT cannot grow its creative output without this policy. 3. Establish a national arts council We cannot grow a creative economy without an arms-length arts council, which is the international gold standard for seed funding, grant allocation and artistic incubation. There’s no JK Rowling or Harry Potter without the £8,000 grant she received from the Scottish Arts Council. That work went on to earn the UK over £20 billion. A TT Arts Council would provide both funding and a brain trust to execute national strategies. 4. Increase funding for CreativeTT The Ministry of Trade must properly fund CreativeTT. The film industry alone needs at least $25 million annually in production grant funding. Between 2007–2011, international productions brought in over $150 million in foreign exchange under a better-funded, better-structured system. We need to return to this. Our goals – produce one premium local feature film and one TV series annually and licence at least one to an international streamer each year. Year-one earnings from ticket sales $10-30 million. 5. Launch a national TT tour company A dedicated creative export agency should identify, refine and export our best IP: music, fashion, film, carnival. One major priority should be an industrial plan for Soca, which has expanded its global influence dramatically over the past 20 years. [caption id="attachment_1184864" align="alignnone" width="1024"] -[/caption] Like Afro-Beats, we must target the creation of a Soca Chart in Britain and other niche charts in the US, Asia and Africa. This effort can leverage global celebrities of TT heritage, like Nicky Minaj, Winston Duke, Jillionaire, Cardi B, Theophilus London, Dwayne Bravo, Nia Long and Brian Lara – to boost international reach. 6. Address the sector's human crisis Local creatives haven’t suffered this much since the 1980s recession. We're seeing suicides, mental health crises and widespread poverty among artists. The government must respond with care, recognising that the sector can rebound rapidly, if properly facilitated. Yet after 63 years of independence and over $1 trillion in public expenditure over 20 years, most local arts sectors still have no dedicated public infrastructure or permanent homes. Globally, state-donated cultural institutions like the Royal National Theatre or the British Film Institute anchor creative sectors. TT must finally honour its cultural workers by providing spaces where creatives can plan, thrive and innovate. 7. Build creative hubs We need to establish creative hubs across TT. These hubs would be wired spaces where creators collaborate, incubate ideas and produce content for export. Many abandoned buildings in Port of Spain and beyond can be repurposed. Similar creative clusters in the EU and US have driven urban renewal and innovation. 8. Set targets for Carnival At peak, Carnival attracted 65,000 visitors (2006) and earned $1.6 billion (2024). With strategic cruise line partnerships, we could exceed 70,000 visitors and generate over $2 billion in annual foreign exchange. This requires setting clear industry growth targets, aligning ministries and accordingly. These are just some of the proposals submitted for Budget 2025/26. Part two will address East Port of Spain, the heritage economy, tech voc and the fine arts.   The post Unleashing the creative industry appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.