Arts and Culture Minister, Mr Paul Mashatile will pay a special visit to the Arts Journalism Workshop which is part of the skills and development programme supported by the department through the Cape Town International Jazz Festival.
"We are encouraged by the growth of this training and development programme. It offers opportunities for skills transfer and development for our emerging artists and journalists, who play an invaluable role by reporting on this sector," said Mashatile ahead of his attendance at the workshop.
Whilst there, the Minister will join an open panel discussion, which will debate “Where will the new freedom songs come from." The panel will include guests such as Roger Lucy, a well-respected musician, journalist, film maker, actor and educator.
The programme is part of the Mzansi Golden Economy Strategy an initiative of the Department of Arts and Culture, which aims amongst others to enhance skills development within the arts sector, allowing the industry reach its full potential as a major driver of economic growth and job creation.
The CTIJ is one of a total of 26 major cultural events that the DAC have identified across the country for targeted support. "We are particularly encouraged that the Cape Town International Jazz Festival continues to make a significant contribution to the economy of Cape Town and that of the entire Western Cape," added Mashatile.
The event will take place as follows:
Date: Wednesday, 3 April 2013
Time: 13h45 – 15h15
Venue: Fountains Hotel, 1 St Georges Mall Street, Cape Town
The Minister will also speak at the free community concert at the Green Market square to be held at 17h00.
Note to Editors
The Arts Journalism workshop is the longest running and most popular of a range of skills development courses supported by the DAC, as part of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival.
The week-long closed course focuses on print and electronic media and is aimed at qualified journalists, freelancers, and journalism students.
A stringent selection process for this professional course exists and participants have to motivate for acceptance into the programme.
Course objectives
Raise the standard of arts journalism in South Africa Provide training programmes compliant with national journalism standards that can contribute toward bankable qualifications within the National Qualification Framework (NQF) Make training available to all aspiring journalists, including part- time journalists not funded by media houses. Facilitate networking between South African arts journalists and their SADC counterparts. Expand the programme to the rest of Africa.
Media RSVP:
Teresa Shabalala
Cell: 082 933 9156
Tel: 012 441 3626
Media enquiries:
Mack Lewele
Cell: 082 450 5076
Percy Mthimkhulu
Cell: 082 389 2684
