Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning.

            I am pleased to be here at the second edition of “Beyond 2006: The Global Summit for Creative Industries”. I welcome all participants, creative thought leaders and entrepreneurs to this Conference.  I hope that you will enjoy the discussions and more importantly, especially for first time visitors, discover some of the delights that Singapore can offer and have an enjoyable stay. 

2          Beyond 2006 is a key event reflecting MICA’s vision to develop Singapore as a key creative hub in Asia. It is one of the many events under Creative 2006 held during the month of November to evaluate and take stock of our strategy in developing the creative industries.

3          Today, we have in our presence many international creative icons who will be sharing their thoughts on creativity and entrepreneurship. I am sure everyone is eagerly waiting to hear from our distinguished speakers. But I thought it would be appropriate to begin with the story of a creative Singaporean who is an inspiration to all. This is the story of Mark Ong, a young man, who started SBTG in 1997 while he was still a visual communications student at Temasek Polytechnic.  Mark’s passion for sneakers, skateboards, clothes and low-riders led him to carve out a niche market in the local sub-pop culture, designing cutting edge sneakers that are custom-made and one-of-a-kind.  He sold his unique products on the Internet. With the help of online outreach, his fame grew. His innovative and creative idea of making specially designed sneakers soon won him international recognition. He is now the most sought-after underground shoe designer/customiser in the sneaker collectors’ world.  His company, SBTG has recently designed a special range of low-riders for Nike that will be sold in the Asia Pacific region. He has also forged design collaborations with Packer Shoes, New Jersey (USA), Atmos and Chapter (Japan) and AdFunture (USA). He shows that creative ideas need not be rocket science to make an impact. Creative design can transform something as mundane as a pair of sneakers into collector’s item with a price to match.

4          How do we measure his contributions to the creative industries? The dollar value of his contribution is one dimension and the easier aspect to calculate.  But I believe that Mark Ong’s contribution goes beyond the dollar value.  He has shown how even simple ideas can fetch much higher value when creative design is incorporated.  He has shown many Singaporeans the infinite possibilities of design.  This is what I would now like to elaborate on.

Economic Contribution of creative industries 

5          The creative industries are gaining worldwide recognition for its strategic and economic importance. The United Kingdom, Australia and South Korea and China are examples of countries that have recognised the value and potential of the creative industries.  They have launched concerted efforts to enhance their national competitiveness and have also increased their investments in this sector. Globally, the creative industries are among the fastest growing economic sectors.  The global market value of the Creative Cluster was estimated at more than US$1 trillion in 2005.  It currently contributes over 7% of the world’s GDP and is projected to grow 10% annually .   In the UK, the creative industries make a far more significant contribution to output than hospitality or utilities and deliver many times the output due to agriculture, fisheries or forestry sectors.  The three largest sub-sectors are design, publishing and television/radio.

6          Similarly, in Singapore, the value added of this sector had grown at 7% compared to 4% for the general economy from 1995 to 2003.  Employment grew by 5.5% per annum compared to 2.3% for the whole economy during the same period. The creative sector was able to create more jobs in this sector during a period when some other sectors actually suffered a fall in employment. In 2003, we launched the Creative Industries Development Strategy. Since then, my Ministry and partners in the public and private sectors have put in place many programmes and supporting structures to drive this growing sector.

7          How do the creative industries contribute to Singapore’s economy and society? They do so in many ways.  The strong growth helped to boost overall economic performance and create new opportunities for Singaporeans. Latest figures for 2004 show that the cluster grew by 8%, contributing to total value added of SGD 6.7billion, adding more than 1000 jobs and accounting for a total employment size of 94,000 in 2004. Besides value add and employment, this cluster has a wider reaching impact across the economy.

8          The activities within the creative industries also result in positive spin-offs to other sectors such as tourism and retail. This strong multiplier effect had also been acknowledged by the United Kingdom’s Cox Review of Creativity in Business and the Creative Economy Programme. Here in Singapore, the performing arts have a higher output and employment multipliers as compared to many other economic sectors. The creative cluster often acts as key marketing and promotional tools for other sectors such as manufacturing, financial services and education.  They draw on creative and innovative innovative capacity to differentiate products and services offered by other sectors. For example, the creative industries will have an important role to play in offering a unique experience to visitors in Singapore’s future integrated resorts in Marina Bay and Sentosa island.  In fact, the developers and proposers for these resorts are banking heavily on their creative components to enhance their business attractions and to ensure continued interest and repeat visitors.

Wider contributions

9          It is clear that many countries now see the creative industries as a key competitive advantage in the globalised economy. Ideas and imagination have become valuable assets and drivers of economic opportunities and growth.  Singapore cannot be any different.  We must harness creativity and the power of innovation to forge ahead in a globalised economy. 

10        We have focused our creative industries efforts on the arts, design and media sectors.  For this morning, I would just like to dwell a little on the design sub-sector. We recognise that good designs will give us a competitive edge.  In a market place where nearly everything has been commoditised by digital technologies, good design has become a critical differentiator. Had this been understood and appreciated by our entrepreneurs and corporate managers? The answer is “Yes”. In a design industry survey, we found that 80% of surveyed companies saw better sales through the use of design. They clearly appreciated the value of design in their businesses. This finding has encouraged us to embed design deeper into our corporate culture. The DesignSingapore Council and International Enterprise Singapore are thus making many efforts to enhance local enterprises’ ability to adopt and embrace design as an integral part of their business strategy.  We will help them to use design to improve their products and services for domestic and overseas markets.

11        The creative cluster helps improve our quality of life.  To this end, we launched 10 TouchPoints, an initiative which encourages the general public to identify 10 everyday things to be redesigned with a more user-centric focus. It could be ideas to improve our bus shelters or our currency notes which we use everyday without paying much attention to it.  The response to this initiative has been very encouraging.  Within two weeks, we have already received over 70 nominations of what need to be redesigned.  Such ideas could lead to better appreciation of good design and enhance our public service and lifestyle.

13        The creative cluster also offers space for diversity and originality. Last Friday, I launched Greenfield 2006, an event which showcases innovative artistic enterprises and creative homegrown products and concepts.  The event profiled projects supported by the Creative Community Singapore (CCS) programme to encourage Singaporeans to unleash their creative potential.   We have already supported 36 projects, 10 of which have been completed.  26,000 people have participated in these projects and 3,600 people have been trained in various aspects of the creative industries ranging from popularising poetry to interactive digital media to bringing arts to the community and teaching crafts skills to raise earning capability of older citizens. Through such CCS projects, we are exciting and encouraging Singaporeans to take their ideas and inspirations beyond day-dreams into the real world to touch the life of fellow citizens.

14        In many ways, the creative cluster, while drawing on our arts and cultural heritage, is also helping to shape our economic development and social progress. We are not just branding our creative industries and our media industries, but also adding an important new dimension to the Singapore brand. Our growing creative sector will reinforce the image of Singapore as a global city for the arts and a choice place to work, live and play. 

Measurement of Creative Industries

15        Simple benchmarks to measure the success of creative industries are not adequate.  My Ministry had earlier set the target to increase the GDP contribution of the creative cluster from 3% to 6% in 2012.  Economic contributions are important part of the story.  However, economic contributions may not capture all the different contributions of sub-sectors and value chains. We recognise that the wider impact on individuals and community are also significant intangible markers to determine if Singapore has made progress in creativity, innovation and move on to become a society with stronger appreciation of the arts and aesthetics.   Long-term success and sustainability of this sector will depend on balancing creativity and commercial viability with cultural and social capital building.     

Creative Industries Strategies

16        I am pleased to note that we are making good progress in the creative industries. In going forward, we will continue with the key thrusts of our creative industries strategy with greater determination and urgency.

17        We have to create unique content with an international appeal.  To do this, we need creative talents. We have established specialised institutions, scholarships, training grants and provided collaborative opportunities with international world-class talents. For example, local companies collaborated with renowned Japanese designer Toshiyuki Kita to develop a collection of working prototypes for the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan this year. I was informed that the showcase was very well-received at the Salone and attracted much design media attention.

18        Together with the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA), we are now developing the Creative Industries Workforce Skills Qualification (WSQ) framework which is a national skills framework to set standards and build competencies in the industry. A Creative Industries Manpower, Skills and Training Council (CI MSTC) has been convened to oversee this process. 

19        We are determined to help our creative sector venture into the competitive global market.  To this end, we have led local talents and enterprises to participate in major international markets such as MIPCOM, and the Venice Biennale International Architecture Exhibition. We are happy with the outcome of these efforts so far.  For example, approximately USD 50 million worth of deals was announced by Singapore media players at MIPCOM in October 06.

20        To create a culture of creativity, we are supporting and initiating events or platforms to bring about exchange, discourse, deal flow, collaborations and partnership formation.  This conference, Beyond 2006, is therefore an excellent forum for entrepreneurs to learn about trends, pick up ideas and exchange views in the Creative Industries.

Conclusion

21        In conclusion, as creative professionals, business leaders, policy makers and trend-setters, I hope that the Beyond 2006 will inspire and challenge you through discussion and debates on the creative industries’ impact on the individual, society, the economy or even the world, as well as equip you with fresh ideas, knowledge and the creative capacity to reinvent our future.

22        I wish you a fulfilling, fruitful and pleasant discussion.  Thank you.