Cebu creative sector works to live up to UNESCO title

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu City has been officially named as part of the UNESCO Creative Cities International Network under the design category, now the challenge lies on sustaining the reputation.

On October 30, 2019, Cebu City joined other 66 cities designated by UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay as Creative Cities.

To sustain its inclusion as one of the world’s ‘Creative City’, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI-7) regional director Asteria Caberte said Cebu City’s creative sector, Cebu City local government unit (LGU) and DTI-7 are now working together to complete the action plan, so that Cebu could sustain its reputation in the creative and design sphere.

“Definitely the creative sector i.e. furniture, fashion accessories, GTH, [and others] will benefit and contribute to putting them at the core of planning,” Caberte said in an interview yesterday.

As explained in the UNESCO website (https://en.unesco.org), the UNESCO Creative Cities are laboratories of ideas and innovative practices that bring a tangible contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through innovative thinking and action.

Through their commitment, Creative cities from all continents and regions with different income levels and populations are championing sustainable development actions that directly benefit communities at urban level.

“All over the world, these cities, each in its way, make culture the pillar, not an accessory, of their strategy,” says UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. “This favors political and social innovation and is particularly important for the young generations.”

With 66 new creative cities this year, the UNESCO Creative Cities Network now counts to a total of 246 cities all over the world.

As stated in the website, UNESCO Creative Cities Network members work together towards a common mission: placing creativity and the creative economy at the core of their urban development plans to make cities safe, resilient, inclusive and sustainable, in line with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.