Kota Kinabalu: Sabah’s arts and creative practitioners have been urged to collaborate with the State Government to build a competitive creative economy ecosystem capable of generating economic returns and creating jobs for youths.
Youth, Sports and Creative Economy Development Minister Datuk Nizam Abu Bakar Titingan said the cultural and creative industries possess substantial potential to drive new economic growth through creative content, digital innovation, performing arts, film, music, and intellectual property development.
He noted that national data from the Department of Statistics Malaysia’s 2024 Cultural and Creative Satellite Account showed the sector contributed RM130.7 billion, or 6.8 per cent of national Gross Domestic Product, with creative product exports rising 12.4 per cent to RM63 billion.
Nizam said this during a courtesy call at his office by a delegation from the Federation of Sabah Creative Associations (Kreatif Sabah), led by its chairman Chester Pang.
During the meeting, the delegation submitted two working papers proposing the establishment of the Tawau Creative Hub (Tawau C-Hub) and the hosting of a Sabah arts and creative practitioners town hall.
Pang also presented Kreatif Sabah’s Seven-Point Proposal Memorandum, which, among others, called for consolidated administrative coordination of the creative economy under one ministry, the creation of one-stop creative hubs, priority engagement for local artists in official state functions, and industry representation in policy formulation.
Nizam said all proposals submitted would be studied based on suitability, current priorities, financial feasibility, and relevant approval processes, noting that the development of the creative economy portfolio requires careful planning and inter-agency coordination.
