In early April 2009, we shared our expertise in cultural policy with the European Commission at a high-profile ministerial conference on the role of culture as a driver for development in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.

The conference, entitled International Colloquium: Culture and Creativity, vectors for development, saw Rebecca Walton (Director Arts, British Council) and Philip Goodwin (Programme Leader Creative and Knowledge Economy, British Council) discuss the role of art and culture in economic development alongside high profile participants including Malian President Amadou Toumani Touré; chairman of the Aga Khan foundation Stefano Bianca; State Secretary for Culture from Slovenia, Stojan Pelko; and Ministers of Culture from Ethiopia, Mozambique and Jamaica. By bringing 150 cultural players from ACP countries to Brussels for the conference, the EC demonstrated their commitment to supporting culture for development.  

Any intervention in favour of culture must be based on equality and trust
Rebecca Walton delivered a stirring presentation on the essential place of culture in a European Development Policy towards ACP countries. She emphasised that any intervention in favour of culture must be based on equality and trust.

Philip Goodwin spoke about the importance of mapping the creative industries and widening the debate around policy making, making particular reference to our projects in South Africa and Tanzania. He also mentioned our Creative Lives programme which equips young people with the skills to prosper in the creative economy.

The response to Rebecca and Philip’s presentations was extremely positive, resulting in numerous requests for copies of their papers and the televising of their speeches.

Participating in high level meetings such as the EC culture conference contributes to our goal of being a valued strategic partner of the EC, thereby influencing high-level European thinking on cultural relations and foreign policy. Our ideas were fed into the Brussels Declaration, a policy document crafted by artists, cultural professionals and entrepreneurs attending the conference.

Resources
Rebecca Walton's presentation: The Place of Culture in a European Development Policy towards ACP countries
Philip Goodwin's presentation Art, Culture and Economic Development – driving growth through the creative economy?
The Brussels Declaration