Quezon City, Dumaguete City recognized as UNESCO Creative Cities

Metro Manila, Philippines - Quezon City and Dumaguete City were among the 58 new members of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network announced on Friday, Oct. 31.

Dumaguete City was recognized as a UNESCO Creative City of Literature, while Quezon City is a UNESCO Creative City of Film.

“They make history as the first designations in their respective fields in the country,” the UNESCO-Philippine National Commission said.

“QC also joins Ho Chi Minh City as Southeast Asia's first Creative Cities of Film, and Dumaguete is among the first Creative Cities of Literature in Southeast Asia alongside Jakarta,” it said.

The Quezon City government said the designation will give it the opportunity to strengthen its local film industry by enforcing worker protection policies, developing sustainable talent and professionalization programs, and pursuing global recognition for Filipino filmmakers.

Dumaguete’s tourism office said the recognition was “a celebration of our vibrant literary culture, creativity, and community of storytellers.”

Other creative cities in the Philippines were Baguio City under crafts and folk art, Cebu City under the design category, and Iloilo City for gastronomy.

UNESCO said the UNESCO Creative Cities Network now has 408 cities across more than 100 countries.

The UN specialized agency said the network “promotes cooperation with and among cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development.”

This year’s announcement also welcomed Creative Cities of Architecture, adding to the seven existing fields of crafts and folk art, design, film, gastronomy, literature, media arts, and music.