Ministry Of Culture Initiates Training Programme To Enhance Creative Economy Statistical Framework

The Ministry of Culture has introduced a training programme to update the Statistical Framework for Creative Economy. This initiative, in collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre, involves the Ministry of Economy and Tourism and various statistical centres nationwide. The programme aims to improve national statistical capabilities in culture, arts, and creative industries using a global methodology from WIPO.

Dimiter Gantchev, Acting Director of the CEDM Programme at WIPO, expressed satisfaction with collaborating with the UAE Government on this project. "WIPO is very pleased to work with the Government of the UAE in implementing the Creative Economy Data Model. This is the first project of this type in the Middle East. It will provide a comprehensive overview of the quality of the ecosystem, supporting creative industries and will identify analytical data for policy making, highlighting the importance of intellectual property and culture for the creative industries," he said.

Mubarak Al Nakhi, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, highlighted that this programme marks a significant step towards achieving a long-term vision for an integrated knowledge infrastructure supporting the creative economy. "The programme represents a major milestone in advancing our long-term national vision to develop an integrated knowledge and statistical infrastructure that supports the creative economy. It accelerates our transition towards an innovation-driven economy powered by strong cultural production," he stated.

The UAE's commitment to enhancing its cultural statistics models is evident through partnerships with WIPO and other federal entities. Al Nakhi added, "By partnering with WIPO and the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre, and through the support of federal and local entities, we aim to reinforce the UAE’s leadership in developing cultural statistics models." This collaboration aims to empower decision-makers with tools for evidence-based policy formulation.

The training programme unites WIPO experts to refine national methodologies for data collection and analysis. This effort supports developing indicators that assess performance across culture, arts, and creative sectors. The updated model will enable precise data collection, forming a robust basis for monitoring national performance in these areas.

This initiative aligns with the National Strategy for Cultural and Creative Industries launched in 2021. The strategy seeks to expand this sector's scale within UAE's top ten economic sectors by 2031, aiming for a 5% GDP contribution. The updated statistical model will help track economic growth contributions while enhancing cultural sustainability.

Regional Leadership

The UAE stands as the first Arab nation to adopt WIPO’s updated statistical model. This move reaffirms its leadership in applying best practices fostering creativity and innovation regionally and globally. The initiative strengthens its position as a cultural hub by adopting advanced methodologies that support creative industries' growth.

Through international partnerships like these, UAE builds a high-quality data ecosystem informing future policies. This system strengthens its ability to measure investments' impact on culture and arts while enabling clear growth trajectories ahead.

With inputs from WAM