Several financial institutions in Grenada are positioning themselves to provide enhanced support for the cultural and creative industries after participating in an investment readiness workshop hosted by the Grenada Office of Creative Affairs (GOCA) on October 4th at the Kirani James Athletics Stadium. This first engagement with the financial sector is an integral component of the National Cultural & Creative Industries Strategy Project, which will establish a comprehensive strategic plan and policy framework for Grenada’s creative economy.
Access to financing and a lack of industry specific financial products are major growth barriers for cultural and creative enterprises in Grenada. “The creative economy, like most micro and medium sized enterprises, faces the challenge of financing their operations. This is both for those who are in it for a profit and those who are not,” explained Orlando Roman, Advisor w.r.f. the Creative Economy. “It is important, therefore, for us to engage the private sector financial institutions to see how we can come up with strategies and approaches to enhancing the availability of funds for the creative sector.”
The workshop, facilitated by international expert on culture and the creative economy Dr. Tom Fleming, defined the cultural and creative industries (CCIs) and how they differ from traditional enterprises and explained the investment and financing gaps that exist for Grenadian CCIs. Then, the participants explored solutions to address these gaps under five main areas: 1) strengthening financial literacy for CCI practitioners; 2) tailoring financial products to CCIs; 3) enhancing sector literacy for financiers; 4) incentivizing private investment; and 5) improving access to data and market information.
Representatives from seven (7) financial institutions – Republic Bank Grenada, Grenada Co-operative Bank Limited, Grenada Development Bank, National Insurance Scheme, The Communal Co-operative Credit Union, Nexa Credit Union and Ariza Credit Union – and two (2) investment agencies – Investment Migration Agency and Grenada Investment Development Corporation – attended the Investment Readiness workshop. Faculty members from St. George’s University’s Department of Business and Management Studies also participated in the workshop.
“I am really encouraged that so many of our private sector organizations came out to this workshop to listen, dialog and pledge their support and their interest in investing in the creative sector. So, we can expect to see more products and services being developed by these institutions as we roll out our strategy and see the overall business climate improve for the creative sector,” commented Mr. Romain.
The two-phase National Cultural and Creative Industries Strategy Project is being led by Tom Fleming Creative Consultancy (TFCC), in close collaboration with GOCA. Phase One, currently underway, is a situational analysis of Grenada’s cultural and creative industries. Phase Two, expected to commence within the coming weeks, will see the development of the strategic plan and road map for Grenada’s creative economy.
