Enhancing Egypt’s creative economy

Creative industries that fall under the sector of arts in all its forms (painting, music, acting, weaving, embroidery, jewelry, furniture, and graphic arts etcetera) represent the success stories of the UK.

Just over five percent of the British economy comes from creative economy, and this sector is growing three times as much as the other sectors in the UK. It employs nearly three million people, which sums up to 8.8 percent of jobs in the UK.

Jeff Streeter, director of the British Council in Egypt, announced those numbers during the event that launched the creative economy program for the next three years in Egypt. Their aim is to support entrepreneurial projects in the creative industry as well as create employment opportunities and stimulate the demand of creative Egyptian products.

Streeter clarified the plans to reach these objectives. "In order to support the efforts of the British Council in turning Egyptian creativity into profitable sustainable projects, some key organizations in the entrepreneurial field will visit the UK in the first week of March, to study the strengths of the UK in creative economy, especially in the field of urban development and creative centers."

What is the creative economy program?

The creative program operates directly on two axis, "the first is with the Egyptian government and the institutions related to the industrial field. The other is with entrepreneurs looking to launch small to medium business in this field," as Cathy Costain, head of the art program at the British council, told Wamda.

"We decided to work on creating a resource base in the Arabic language that supports people working in creative economy, providing them with statistics, reports and digital references, entrepreneurs can rely on in their entrepreneurial journeys," she added.