Creation of the Vice-ministry of Creativity and the Orange Economy

Law 397 of 1997 created the Ministry of Culture as the entity responsible of guaranteeing the cultural rights of Colombians within the constitutional framework of recognition and respect for the diversity and cultural variety of the nation:

"The State has the obligation to promote and foster access to the culture of all
Colombians equally by means of permanent education and scientific, technical,
artistic, and professional instruction at all stages of the process of creating the
national identity.

Culture in its diverse manifestations is the basis of nationality. The State recognizes
the equality and dignity of all those who live together in the country. The State will
promote research, science, development, and the diffusion of the nation's cultural
values. "
(Art. 70, Political Constitution of the Republic of Colombia)

The preamble of Law 397 states that "Economic and social development must be closely linked with cultural, scientific and technological development." (No. 8, Article 1, Law 397 of 1997). Thanks to this, since its inception, the Ministry of Culture has designed strategies aimed at promoting the diversity of cultural expressions, and entrepreneurship as a complement to the initiatives aimed at guaranteeing the cultural rights and protecting the cultural heritage of Colombians.

The enactment of Law 1834 of 2017, or Orange Economy Law, complements previous progress in cultural legislation, committing the State to the promotion, fostering and protection of the cultural and creative industries. In this context, entrepreneurship and the culture economy cease to be marginal concerns and take on a central role in national institutions. The above supposes the modernization and structural revamping of the Ministry of Culture. In addition to the historical functions of the ministry, it was necessary to adopt an organization chart that fostered the formulation and implementation of public policies for the cultural and creative industries, as well as creating a leader for the inter-institutional coordination that would make them a reality.

By decree 2120 of 2018, the Ministry of Culture's structure was modified, creating the Vice Ministry of Creativity and the Orange Economy. According to article 14 of this regulation, the functions of this Vice Ministry are:
1. To propose policies that promote and stimulate creation and research of artistic and cultural activities, as well as those necessary to strengthen cultural expressions and their diffusion at all national territorial levels and abroad.
2. To propose regulations for the development of the cultural and creative economy, guaranteeing the preservation of the plurality and cultural diversity of the country.
3. To supervise the design of plans, programs and projects dealing with the arts, media, film and the cultural and creative economy, that should be incorporated into the National Development Plan.
4. To coordinate, lead and make possible the inter-institutional actions of the National Council of the Orange Economy and other stakeholders, in order to capitalize on the opportunities of the cultural and creative economy and consolidate its growth throughout all the links of the value chain.
5. To provide technical guidelines for the characterization and analysis of all the sectors, industries and agents of the orange economy.
6. To coordinate research, educational, self-analysis and awareness-raising initiatives for the creative sectors.
7. To encourage entrepreneurial and association initiatives throughout the various sectors that are part of the of the cultural and creative economy.
8. To coordinate with the different ministry units and directorates, the design and implementation of the stimulus programme for creation, research and artistic and cultural activity falling under the purview of the Vice Ministry.
9. To provide guidelines to coordinate with the different units of the Ministry the design and implementation of the National Concertation Programme falling under the purview of the Vice Ministry.
10. To provide, in coordination with the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, the guidelines for the development of a consultation platform that brings together the creative private sector, business associations, chambers of commerce, academia and citizenry to analyse barriers to growth and sustainability for the orange economy, and the generation of externalities for the rest of the national productive apparatus.
11. To develop and assess, in coordination with the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE), the Satellite Account for Culture and the Orange Economy.
12. To adopt, in coordination with the Ministry of Labour, tools that strengthen the skills of labourers and entrepreneurs alike in the creativity and orange economy sectors.
13. To design, in coordination with the Ministry of National Education, Ministry of Information and Communication Technologies and the Ministry of Labour, the trades and professional qualifications required by the sectors belonging to the orange economy, which should be included in the National Framework Qualifications (MNC).
14. To promote, in coordination with the Ministry of National Education and the Ministry of Labour, school training processes for cultural and creative development.
15. To design, in coordination with the entities competent in the matter, strategies to promote the employability of creative talent in the orange economy and other productive sectors and issue guidelines for their implementation.
16. To carry out, in coordination with the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (SIC) and the National Directorate of Copyright (DNDA), periodic studies about the economic impact of intellectual property rights in the sectors of the cultural and creative economy, and of the use and infringement of intellectual property.
17. Design and execute, in coordination with the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism (MinCIT), the Ministry of Labour and the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (SIC) and the DNDA, actions aimed at creators, producers, distributors, marketers and consumers, with the aim of raising awareness about: (i) fair economic recognition to authors and creators for the commercialization, distribution, use and enjoyment of their creations; (ii) the benefits derived from the registration of the intellectual property of goods and services of the orange economy; and, (iii) the negative impact of unfair practices, such as piracy.
18. To design and implement, in coordination with MinCIT, spaces for the promotion, dissemination and national and international commercialization of goods and services of the cultural and creative economy, registered in the intellectual property system.
19. To prepare, in coordination with regional and local entities, the agendas of creative municipalities, cities and regions, which should include the identification and characterization of the Orange Development Areas (ADN).
20. To impart directives and guidelines to regional and local entities, economic sectors and other productive agents, for the development of cultural and creative economies.
21. To join efforts and actions in the cultural and creative economy sectors with the strategies and instruments of science, technology and innovation, co-managing actions of entrepreneurship, productive transformation and social innovation.
22. To make its own proposals and coordinate those coming from agents in the orange economy sector to define and regulate mechanisms for support, marketing and promotion of creative entrepreneurship.
23. To coordinate with FINDETER: (i) the design of agendas for municipalities, cities and creative regions throughout the country, with a view of enriching their plans dealing with the promotion of culture and the cultural and creative economy; and (ii) the development of lines of credit and financing to promote the construction of the physical and digital creative infrastructure, taking into account the needs diagnosed in the territories.
24. To coordinate with the Bank for Business Development and Foreign Trade (BANCOLDEX) the generation of instruments and strategies for financial support of creative entrepreneurs and the availability of seed and venture capital.
25. To conduct research on the cultural and creative economy, imparting technical guidelines to follow up on the international commitments made by Colombia in the area of competence of the Vice Ministry.
26. To take the necessary actions for the Ministry's access to international cooperation on issues related to this Vice Ministry.
27. The characterization and analysis of the industries and agents of the orange economy.

Thanks to these actions, since 2018 it has been possible to complement the efforts to guarantee cultural rights with the positioning of culture and creativity as a cross-cutting theme in the country's development policies.