CREATIVE ECONOMY TO BLAZE A NEW TRAIL

       Creative Province, Creative Chatuchak and Creative Sport are some of the projects shaping up under the Creative Economy policy of the government to amplify the value of Thai talent and wean the country away from polluting industrial development.
       "It's not simply a project, but rather a national agenda. Working closely with the private sector, I believe this project will continue [even after a government reshuffle or change]. It's the best exit for Thailand," Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot said yesterday.
       In an interview, Alongkorn, who is in charge of the Creative Economy project - an integral part of the second stimulus package - stressed a fundamental change was necessary for long-term sustainability of the "sandwiched economy".
       The scheme, backed by a Bt20-billion budget for 2010-12, is aimed at boosting the creative economy's contribution to gross domestic product from the National Economic and Social Development Board's estimate of 10.7 per cent in 2006.
       So far, only two activities have been approved, including the Software Industry Promotion Agency's Digital Media Asia 2009 animation fair.
       After the establishment of the National Creative Agency, the Creative Economy project will be kicked off on a national scale next year.
       All villages will be designated their own creative zone where handicrafts can be shown or locals can exhibit their artwork.
       Such zones will also open at more than 1,000 municipal halls and about 40,000 schools. To showcase great Thai designs, shopping malls under the retailers association will be approached for a small space.
       In the next step, all 76 provinces could vie for grants of Bt10 million on average by coming up with a plan to boost the value of their local creative talents.
       For example, Nong Khai's Phon Phisai district could present its ideas to attract 2 million visitors to its annual fireball festival.
       Chatuchak Weekend Market, the world's biggest outdoor shopping arcade, could be branched out upcountry, while Creative Sport would spawn new measures to increase the worth of football or golf markets.
       Under discussion is the project's own channel to promote targeted items.
       Starting next school year, students all over the country will attend a creative class five hours per week to breed a "creative generation".
       With five offices under the National Creative Agency, the projects will be launched nationwide for effectiveness.
       "The key to success is intellectual-property (IP) protection. The project won't succeed without IP. We need to create a new value to suppress copyright violations," Alongkorn said.
       This is the best strategy for Thailand, because mass production had led to exploitation of natural resources and did not guarantee the quality of life, he said.
       As a "sandwiched economy", Thailand could not compete against low-end countries with cheap labour and high-end countries with added value from their creativity and innovation, he said.
       The creative economy will help Thailand overcome the current hurdles in industrial development and show the Kingdom the way to survive.