Kuala Lumpur, 14 October 2021 – The Kuala Lumpur Creative Economy Forum (KUL.CEF) today returned to the capital city of Malaysia for the second year in an online format, kicking off Art In The City (AITC 2021) on a high note. Organised by the Cultural Economy Development Agency (CENDANA), a unit of MyCreative Ventures, in collaboration with the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia, KUL.CEF brings global thought leaders in the fields of cultural and creative economy, public policy, place-making, tourism, creative content, craft, visual arts, dance and businesses for a series of engaging sessions via keynote speeches and panel discussions. The forum which was oversubscribed saw 566 participants from various background in attendance at the event launched by Minister of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia, YB Tan Sri Datuk Sri Panglima TPr Annuar Haji Musa.
This year's KUL.CEF is one of the build-up events in conjunction with the United Nations International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development, as it also prepares to welcome CENDANA's MoU Partner's event, the World Conference of Creative Economy, taking place in Dubai Expo on 7-9 December 2021 with the theme of Inclusively Creative: Curating the Future.
Addressing the forum, YB Tan Sri Datuk Sri Panglima TPr Annuar Haji Musa, Minister of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia shared, “There is certainly a big space for Malaysia’s creative economy to grow. To highlight the government’s commitment towards the creative economy, we can take comfort in the fact that the recently announced 12th Malaysia Plan (RMK12) has identified it as a high impact industry for economic growth. As a whole, the RMK12 aims to boost the creative sector’s contribution to national GDP by almost 20% over the next 5 years—from RM 26.8 billion in 2020 to RM 31.9 billion by 2025. There is a huge role for government to play in facilitating this growth. It doesn’t only require policymakers of the country, but also equally needed is the corporations and the content creators that play an important role in developing the country’s creative economy especially post COVID-19.”
“Without a doubt, the creative economy will be a critical source for rebuilding Malaysia. As we position arts and culture and the wider creative industries for recovery, both MyCreative Ventures and CENDANA will continue to play their roles to safeguard creative businesses and jobs, retain and reinvigorate skillsets and talents - and encourage creative practitioners to new platforms with wide audiences through various platforms energised by technology. This is in line with the MyCreative Group’s endeavour to champion the Malaysian Orange Economy and revitalize local artistic and cultural creativity with involvement at a global level.
Efforts will be further strengthened with MyCreative’s upcoming group transformation to better serve the creative economy industries,” said En. Azmi Said, Chairman of MyCreative Ventures.
CENDANA Founding CEO, Izan Satrina Mohd Sallehudin shared, “CENDANA is proud to see Kuala Lumpur serve as a platform that brings together esteemed and diverse presenters. KUL.CEF is the first event under the Art In The City campaign, that is aimed at nurturing Malaysian creativity through collaborations, private giving and corporate social responsibility in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) pillars. The potential of Malaysia’s cultural and creative economy is extraordinary and CENDANA acknowledges the important role that the culture sector and the wider creative industries play in economic development and has always advocated them as key aspects in achieving the Nation’s recovery, healing, and growth.”
The forum programme saw special addresses by Honourable Dato’ Sri Hajah Nancy Shukri, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Honourable Tuan Mohd Shahar Abdullah, Deputy Minister of Finance I; and keynote speeches from The Honourable Ridwan Kamil, Governor of West Java Indonesia, Jason Bevan, former Head of Creative Development & VP Marketing EMEA Warner Bros Studios, Founder & Managing Director Content Creator Studios, Professor Suk Young Kim, Professor of Theater and Performance Studies UCLA School of Theatre and Kpop industry expert, Lord Ed Vaizey, UK's longest- serving Minister for Technology, Communications & Culture, and many more.
Highlights from the forum included Thinking Exponentially for the Creative Economy, Korean Wave (Hallyu): The Rise of Korea’s Cultural Economy & Pop Culture, Nation Building through Cultural and Creative Policies and Creative Economy as a Source of Economic Strength. Also covered were Strengthening the Role of Corporations in Rebuilding the Creative and Culture Industries and Contributing Towards the Development of Arts and Culture in Malaysia in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.
Other programme highlights included performances by ASK Dance Company, Mah Meri Cultural Village and Orkes Melayu Rojer.
CENDANA, alongside MyCreative and RIUH, aims to reach out, restart, revive, and rebuild the Nation via arts and culture reactivation in the economy. AITC 2021 will take place from October to December 2021 in conjunction with the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development, offering curated activities aimed at promoting the diverse artistic, creativity, compassion, and imagination of Malaysians. The role of Arts and Culture will not only revitalize the country but also heal the Nation after more than a year’s hiatus due to COVID-19 pandemic. For more information about the upcoming programmes, check out www.baskl.com.my/aitc .
Issued by bzBee Consult Sdn Bhd on behalf of CENDANA.
For enquiries, please contact:
Emmy Razali – +6012 342 2006; [email protected]
Ariq Amran – +6013 2566695; [email protected]
CENDANA (Cultural Economy Development Agency) was officially launched on 6 September 2017 to shape a vibrant, sustainable and ambitious cultural economy for Malaysia, further raising the profile of Malaysian arts and culture to help form the identity of Malaysia as an arts destination and strategically place Malaysia on the global stage. It is supported by the Malaysian Government through MyCreative Ventures Sdn. Bhd. (a wholly owned company of the Minister of Finance Incorporated) and reports to the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia. Log on to www.cendana.com.my for details.
About Art In The City
Art In The City is a flagship initiative by CENDANA dedicated to art and performance, with more than 100 dynamic, colourful and optimistic programmes presented this year including an array of music, dance, craft, theatre, film dance, food, heritage, history, and more spread from October 14 to December 28, 2021. Designed to raise greater awareness of the local arts and culture scene and to encourage Malaysians to visit arts venues and experiences around Kuala Lumpur, AITC strives to further propagate the notion of Kuala Lumpur as a vibrant cultural and creative hub. Log on to www.baskl.com.my/aitc for details.
About MyCreative Ventures
MyCreative Ventures is a government investment arm launched in September 2012 to spur the Malaysian creative industry via strategic and innovative funding. Find out more via www.mycreative.com.my .
