Jakarta, August 31, 2026 – The Europe Today: Indonesia and the Philippines have agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the creative economy through cross-border collaboration, talent exchanges and expanded access to markets across Southeast Asia.
Indonesia’s Minister of Creative Economy Teuku Riefky Harsya said the two countries have significant potential to develop mutually beneficial partnerships, particularly through the exchange of creative talent and the development of cultural products with commercial potential.
“We share many similarities and the potential to complement each other. I hope we can strengthen collaboration between our creative talents for mutual benefit,” Harsya said in a statement issued Monday.
He highlighted the Philippines’ established creative sector and talented workforce as offering opportunities for collaboration across various creative subsectors while enabling Indonesian creative businesses to gain wider access to Southeast Asian markets.
One example of the emerging cooperation is the Batik-Barong initiative, which combines the traditional Philippine Barong garment with Indonesian batik techniques and motifs. The initiative brings together the cultural heritage of both countries to create innovative products with potential for expansion into new markets.
The two sides also discussed promotional exchanges and the organization of pop-up exhibitions for creative products in Indonesia and the Philippines. Such initiatives could provide creative enterprises with opportunities to market their products directly, while also allowing them to gauge consumer preferences and market responses in partner countries.
At the regional level, Indonesia and the Philippines are seeking to contribute to the development of a stronger ASEAN creative economy ecosystem. Indonesia has expressed support for the Philippines’ 2026 ASEAN chairmanship initiative to establish the ASEAN Center of Excellence for Creative Industries (ACE-CI) in Manila.
The proposed center is expected to serve as a platform for collaboration, knowledge exchange and exploration of the creative industries of ASEAN member states, helping ensure that creative economy development is pursued through regional cooperation rather than independently by individual countries.
Philippine Ambassador to Indonesia Christopher B. Montero said the Philippines sees considerable opportunities to expand practical cooperation with Indonesia. Manila is also interested in studying Indonesia’s institutional approach to developing its creative economy.
“We hope to identify more collaboration opportunities and develop concrete cooperation to jointly advance the creative economies of both countries,” Montero said.
The partnership is expected to gain further momentum through the 2026 World Conference on Creative Economy (WCCE), scheduled to take place in Jakarta from October 21 to 23. Indonesia has also expressed support for the Philippines’ plan to host the WCCE in 2028.
The growing partnership between the two countries could strengthen the creative economy as an emerging source of ASEAN economic growth while providing creative professionals, businesses and entrepreneurs with greater opportunities to access regional markets.
