Noting cultural development is crucial to enhancing citizens' quality of life, Premier Chang San-cheng today instructed the Ministry of Culture (MOC) to continue meticulously overseeing relevant projects and assisting in developing cultural and creative industries, cultivating talents, and encouraging the research and development (R&D) of cross-industry products.
As the amalgamation of science and technology with culture is an important direction to explore, Chang asked the MOC to continue planning and implementing related measures.
The premier made these remarks after the MOC gave a briefing on its planning of cultural operations. Chang affirmed that the ministry has carried out numerous major projects in recent years, such as the National Taichung Theater and the Wei-Wu-Ying Center for the Arts.
The MOC stated that its measures and accomplishments in promoting the development of cultural and creative industries are as follows:
˙Helping entrepreneurial dreams come true: From 2010 to 2015 the International Entrepreneur
Initiative Taiwan had incentivized almost 400 cultural and creative operators to start up
businesses.
˙Incubation centers: From 2008 to 2015 the MOC had provided subsidies to 34 artistic and
cultural innovation incubation centers as well as guidance to 810 operators, generating jobs for
some 3,500 people.
˙Business subsidies: From 2010 to 2015 the MOC had provided subsidies for 204 cases of R&D
and production, brand marketing, and market development by cultural and creative businesses.
˙The iMatch website: From 2013 to 2015 this platform providing advertising and
matching opportunities for creative proposals had received 958 applications and
made successful matches for 418 cases.
To assist relevant businesses to explore and expand their global channels, every year the MOC selects outstanding cultural and creative startups to participate in major international cultural and creative exhibitions through the Fresh Taiwan program. This endeavor helps the businesses make procurement matches and develop commercial collaboration internationally as well as market Taiwan's cultural and creative image.
To integrate and open up public and private arts and cultural resources, the MOC's iCulture website has linked up 113 websites and incorporated information on public and private organizations' cultural facilities as well as arts and cultural events and street artists. The site's search function has already been used more than 8.54 million times. In addition, Open Data Services of MOC provides the general public, government agencies and private organizations information for value-added use.