Culture: Adapting and Innovating in the Face of Covid-19
By Tania Valdés
Cultural and creative sectors are important as they boost well-being and health, education, inclusion, urban regeneration, but also in terms of their economic footprint and employment.
Nevertheless, despite their importance for society, these sectors have been hardly hit by the pandemic of Covid-19. In this context, cultural and creative industries have had to adapt and innovate in the face of the health crisis.
In the Middle Eastern region, the venue-based sectors (such as museums, performing arts, live music, festivals, cinema, etc.) are the hardest hit by social distancing measures. Due to this, adapting into online content platforms, have profited from the increased demand for cultural content streaming during lockdown.
67% percent of Middle East executives indicate transitioning to modernize existing technology infrastructure. Middle Eastern companies registered a significant surge in their innovation strategy scores due to COVID-19. Thus, although the pandemic had negative effects in the cultural sector, it was a catalyzer for innovation and metamorphosis into a newer cultural approach.
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