Jakarta (ANTARA) - Minister of Culture, Fadli Zon, has invited Qatar to strengthen cooperation in cultural industry development, which can positively impact the tourism and creative economy sectors.
"I invite Qatar to enhance collaboration with us in the fields of culture and economy that would benefit the development of both countries, such as through investment in film production and museums," he said here on Monday.
He made the statement during the "Indonesia–Qatar CEO Forum" meeting, which was held as part of President Prabowo Subianto's state visit agenda in Qatar.
Zon also expressed the Indonesian government's commitment to encouraging investment in the cultural sector and developing a culture-based creative industry as a foundation for strengthening the economy.
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A culture-based economy, he explained, would contribute to national development and improve the people's welfare.
To that end, Minister Zon said he believes that the downstreaming of culture is a strategic step to turn traditional cultural wealth into an economic driver.
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According to the minister, sustainably utilizing cultural potential would not only help preserve heritage, but also create cultural added value to spur national economic growth.
He said that Indonesia has extraordinary cultural wealth, dating back to 1.8 million years ago and extending into contemporary pop culture, as well as music and film, and the rapidly evolving culture that is developing on digital platforms.
At the meeting, Sheikha Mayassa Al Thani, chairperson of Qatar Museums, said that the power of culture is a driving force for economic growth as culture has extraordinary potential to influence economic development.
