Study

STUDY

"Sofia - City of Creative Economy"

The study was presented in last April by Dr. Todor Chobanov, Deputy Mayor of Sofia and Ms. Diana Andreeva, head of the Observatory of Cultural Economics.

The data suggest that Sofia retains its place as a national centre of the cultural and creative industries. The main indicators for the arts, cultural and creative industries, cultural heritage and cultural tourism concerning their economic significance - added value, the employed, turnover, number of organizations, foreign direct investment, show growth and positive dynamics for the 2008 - 2013 period. For example, each tenth organization or enterprise in the capital is an enterprise of the creative economy. These results reveal a sector which is much more resistant to the economic crisis in the majority of sectors in the Bulgarian economy, a sector which keeps on providing optimistic figures that are important for the overall urban development and economy of Sofia and are a reason to call Sofia - city of the creative economy.

The cultural and creative industries constitute an 8 percent share in the economy of the city and occupy the fourth place among the economic development sectors, said Dr. Todor Chobanov - Deputy Mayor of Sofia Municipality at the presentation of the study. More than 9 percent of those employed are in this sphere. Concerning the share of cultural and creative industries in the city's economy Sofia ranks among the top 10 capital cities in the European Union.

Sofia was called UNESCO Creative City of the Cinema in 2014. Film making, along with the design, cultural and creative industries and software games, is among the leading industries.

The study "Sofia - city of creative economy" is the result of a joint project of Sofia City Municipality and the Observatory of Cultural Economics. The study and the results which show a stable economic growth of the arts, cultural and creative industries, cultural heritage and cultural tourism, are the basis for the National Strategy for development which is currently being developed, said Diana Andreeva.