A regional perspective of the creative economy in Brazil

Resumen

In a knowledge-based economy, initiatives based on the Creative Economy framework are supposed to promote regional economic diversification in developing countries. In Brazil, policy initiatives have focused on those activities with a view to design public policies oriented to reducing socio-economic and regional inequalities, as well as spreading those activities throughout the territory, especially towards less favored regions. Based on the Brazilian experience, this article discusses whether the pre-existing regional distribution of various types of creative activities favors or hinders the reduction of regional inequalities as a result of a policy focused on promoting creative activities and what actions could be adopted to achieve this result. Specifically, the paper discusses whether this expansion can promote an effective reduction of regional inequalities in terms of the number and quality of jobs and wage levels associated with those activities. The analysis suggests that the regional decentralization of creative activities towards less developed regions has been relatively limited in Brazil, as the more developed regions have remained more specialized in trades with higher digital and technological content, while the less developed regions have remained relatively more specialized in activities related to the cultural heritage. To reduce this imbalance, the support of local institutions and S&T infrastructure related to creative activities appears to be very important, which points out to the relevance of comprehensive policies well-adapted to very diverse local realities. This effort should have the impact of new digital-based technologies converge with the strengthening of economic potential of local and regional cultural heritage, by enhancing professional qualification of workers devoted to those activities.