Every September of each year is declared as the “Philippine Creative Industries Month” to promote the goods, products, and services of the country’s creative industries and to raise awareness of the creative industries’ role in national development.
This is in support of Republic Act 11904 or the Philippine Creative Industries Development Act (PCIDA), signed into law on July 28, 2022. Under the law, the Philippine Creative Industries Development Council (PCIDC) will lead the development and promotion of the creative industries nationwide. The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is the primary agency that is responsible for the law’s implementation.
At their core, creative industries are sectors of the economy that generate wealth and jobs through the “creation and development of intellectual property or artistic talent.” Essentially, they are businesses whose primary value comes from creativity, imagination, and ideas.
A simpler way to think of them is — industries that create products and services based on symbolic, artistic, and cultural value, rather than just pure utilitarian function.
An example is a chair. Its utilitarian function is an object to sit on. It becomes a creative product if the chair is designed by an artisan inspired by traditional culture or by a furniture designer with a unique aesthetic. Its value lies in its design, brand, and cultural significance.
Key characteristics of creative industries are: (1) It is idea-based, which means their primary raw material is human creativity, imagination, and intellectual capital; (2) It is high risk because it is difficult to predict what will be a commercial success (whether a movie, book, or fashion trend will become a hit); (3) It is driven by intellectual property (IP) wherein products are often protected by copyright, trademarks, patents, and design rights; and (4) It has symbolic value as they create meaning, experiences, and identity.
The products and services in the creative industries involve a creative chain, which is a complex ecosystem. It begins from creation (original idea) then production (turning the idea into a product), then distribution (getting the product to the market), then exhibition/consumption (where the audience experiences it).
There is no single universally agreed upon list, but the Philippine government has identified the following nine (9) key domains within the creative economy: (1) Audiovisual Media – this includes content creation and distribution, such as film, television, and other visual media; (2) Digital Interactive Media – this encompasses software, mobile applications, electronic games, and other digital content; (3) Creative Services – this includes advertising. marketing, research and development, and other artistic and design-related services; (4) Design – this covers various design fields such as fashion, graphic design, product design, architectural and interior design; (5) Publishing and Printed Media – this involves the creation and distribution of books, magazines, newspapers, and other printed materials; (6) Performing Arts – this includes music, theater, dances, and other live performances; (7) Visual Arts — this includes painting, sculpture, photography, crafts, and other fine arts; (8) Traditional Cultural Expressions – this focuses on the preservation and promotion of indigenous cultural heritage; and (9) Cultural Sites – this refers to heritage sites, museums, and other cultural venues.
Creative industries are similar to cultural industries, but there is a slight distinction. Cultural industries are more focused on heritage, the arts, and activities that have a strong symbolic and cultural value. On the other hand, creative industries is a broader, more modern term that includes cultural industries but also encompasses commercial, innovation-driven sectors where creativity is a key input. Cultural industries emphasize cultural value while creative industries emphasize the economic potential of creativity.
In other words, creative industries are the business of imagination.
And it is big business. The global creative industries are a major economic force valued at approximately USD 2.9 trillion in 2024 and projected to reach USD 4.24 trillion by 2033, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 4.29 percent.
Creative industries contribute 2-7 percent to the gross domestic product (GDP) of developed economies and are among the fastest-growing sectors globally. In emerging markets and developing economies, creative industries contribute 4-15 percent to GDP.
In terms of employment and job creation, creative industries support approximately 50 million jobs worldwide, with a significant portion held by youth and women. These industries are reported to have a strong multiplier effect — for every USD 1 spent in the creative sectors, it generates USD 2.5 in economic output.
In the Philippines, the creative economy at current prices amounted to PHP 1.94 trillion in 2024, according to the report by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released last March 20, 2025. This represents an 8.7 percent increase from PHP 1.78 trillion in 2023. This accounted for 7.3 percent of the country’s GDP in 2024.
The symbols and images domain — which includes the manufacturing, renting, and trading of visual designs and symbols across various products like fashion, furniture, jewelry, toys, visual arts, and design — accounted for the largest share at PHP 640.29 billion or 33 percent of the total creative economy in 2024.
Employment in creative industries increased to 7.51 million in 2024 from 7.23 million in 2023, indicating an annual growth of 3.9 percent. The share of employment in creative industries of the total employment in the country was at 15.4 percent in 2024.
In terms of employment in the creative industries, traditional cultural expression activities registered the highest share at 36.6 percent in 2024.
As Davao City ramps up its push to be a leading creative city, our local cultural and creative industries have joined forces to create a harmonized roadmap with the support of the DTI, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), the Mindanao Development Authority (MINDA), the City Government of Davao, and the Conrado and Ladislawa Alcantara Foundation, Inc. (CLAFI).
Davao’s startup community is having its 4th Davao StartUp Week on September 20-27, 2025, with the theme: “Grassroots, Global Reach: Scaling Innovation from the South.” A lot of innovative solutions from Davao and Mindanao startups will be pitched to government and private investors.
Meanwhile, the culture and arts community is coming together for the first-ever Davao Culture, Arts and Heritage Summit on September 27-28, 2025, to be held at the Holy Cross of Davao College (first day) and the Almendras Gym (second day). All the cultural and creative domains will be represented in the summit, and the aspirations, challenges, and opportunities of each domain will be gathered to serve as a guide for the roadmap that will be created. This will be the common reference for the implementation of the city’s culture and arts ordinance and its inventions and innovations ordinance to promote and support Davao City’s cultural and creative industries.
This is a result of people’s initiative — artists, artisans, creatives, academics, entrepreneurs, non-government, and socio-civic organizations coming together to promote creativity in our city. A testament to the pioneering Davaoeño spirit of innovation and community.
