Singapore plans to double the size of its media, design and arts industries by 2012, a government minister said on Saturday, as the trade-reliant city-state embraces creativity to sustain economic growth.
Singapore's creative industries - arts, design and media - are expected to contribute six percent of the island's $93 billion economy by 2012, double last year's output, said Lee Boon Yang, minister for information, communication and the arts.
"This will result in higher demand for creative talents and those who can contribute to meeting the growing market for creative products and services," he told a graduating ceremony of fine arts students.
Singapore is better known for censoring media than promoting it. But as competition heats up from low-cost countries such as China and India, the government is re-engineering its economy and society to make Singapore more vibrant and entrepreneurial.
Deputy premier Lee Hsien Loong, who replaces Goh Chok Tong as prime minister on August 12, has positioned himself as a champion for a more open society which the government recognises is needed to foster more dynamic industries.
Lee Boon Yang said the government had set aside about S$200 million ($117 million) over five years to develop Singapore into a "vibrant Asian creative hub".
In December, Singapore earmarked S$100 million to develop documentaries and films, with a goal to produce up to five low-budget films a year. A new city neighbourhood designed for media companies, dubbed "Fusionpolis", is now being built.
Under a "Media 21" policy unveiled last year, Singapore wants to create 50,000 jobs in the creative industries by 2012.
But Singapore's artists still often complain of the heavy hand of state censors in the media and arts. Sales of Playboy magazine are illegal and censorship of films shown in cinemas remains pervasive. Some controversial films are outright banned.
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