The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) on Tuesday said that the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for a law intended to develop the local creatives industry has already been signed, paving the way for the full implementation of the measure.
The 24-page IRR for the Philippine Creative Industries Development Act, which lapsed into law last July 28 and signed by Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual last Nov. 11, mandates the development of a vibrant local creative industries.
“With new technologies and digital transformation, creative industries present new opportunities and innovation prospects for creative and cultural workers,” Trade Undersecretary Rafaelita Aldaba said in a statement.
“Leveraging on cultural richness, skilled content artists and creators, and new technologies, the creative industries can act as the prime catalyst for creative disruption and innovation in the country,” she added.
The law aims to protect and strengthen the rights and capacities of creative firms, artists, artisans, creators, creative workers, indigenous cultural communities, creative content providers and other stakeholders.
The DTI said it also provides adequate support measures to the Philippine creative industries which currently face various binding constraints to growth.
These challenges include high output costs, fragmented education systems, piracy issues, lack of data and statistics, underdeveloped branding and infrastructure, and wide skill gaps and mismatch, among others.
The law mandates the establishment of the Philippine Creative Industries Development Council, which will be chaired by the Trade Secretary, which will steer and oversee the implementation of the law.
The other council members are Secretaries from the Department of Education, Department of Science and Technology, National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Tourism, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government.
Included as well are the heads of the Commission of Higher Education, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, and the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines.
Private sector representatives from various creative domains will also be part of the council.
Aside from the creation of the council, the law also mandates the creation of a development plan for the creative sector, dubbed as the Philippine Creative Industries Development Plan.
The framework is intended to embody several support mechanisms to address specific concerns in the creative ecosystem, which covers infrastructure, research and development, innovation, digitalization, financing, investment and education, among others.
The IRR will take effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two newspapers of general circulation.
The filling of three certified copies of the national register is also a requirement for it to take effect.