Bacolod City – An ordinance establishing the Creative Industries Development Office, was passed by the Bacolod Sangguniang Panlungsod on third and final reading recently.
The ordinance, authored by Councilor Em Ang, said Bacolod City continues to be a vibrant hub for artistic expression and innovation, the city’s rich cultural heritage combined with a growing community of talented individuals who have been contributing to the flourishing creative landscape.
Bacolod’s creative talents are gaining recognition beyond local borders, with artists participating in international exhibitions, collaborations, and competitions. This global exposure is positioning Bacolod City as a noteworthy contributor to the Philippine creative scene, it said.
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Industry classified the following sectors under the creative industry in the Philippines namely: performing arts; visual arts; publishing, printing and literature; design; audiovisual and new media; creative services; cultural sites and traditional cultural expressions, the ordinance said.
Based on the latest economic data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the arts, entertainment, and recreation sector ranked as the second top-performing economic sector, next to accommodation and food service activities, and outpacing other key industries. The Philippine creative industries contributed P52.8 billion in terms of gross value added (GVA) to the domestic economy in the third quarter of 2023, up 15.5 percent year-on-year, and one of the significant catalysts for the country’s growth, according to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), it said.
The creative industry in Bacolod needs to be further developed to sustain the ever-growing love of Bacolodnons for culture and arts, thus the passage of this ordinance, it added.
The ordinance to be known as the Bacolod Creative Industries Development Ordinance, provides for the creation of an office under the City Mayor’s Office which will serve as a focal point for the planning, implementation, and coordination of activities related to the creative industries within the city.
It also provides for the creation of the Bacolod Creative Industries Development Council, which will be chaired by the City Mayor.
The funding for the initial implementation of this ordinance will be the amount of P1 million to be taken from the General Fund or any available funds of the city.
Thereafter, an appropriation for the purpose will be determined on an annual basis according to the program’s prior year utilization report and other relevant indicators. (Chrysee Semillano via The Visayan Daily Star (TVDS), photo courtesy of TVDS)
