television series
17 November 2006
Thank you Programme Director
Honourable guests
And everyone who is here with us today
It gives me great pleasure to address you at this important occasion. Today
marks yet another progress in this 'Age of Hope' where Arts and Culture through
the medium of television is being used by our filmmakers to preserve our
heritage.
The series 'Voices of Africa' celebrates our rich culture and heritage,
drawing from all the people of South Africa. Our culture has survived through
hundreds of years from outside influence of our colonial powers and changes in
the way of life. It is important that our cultural experiences and stories,
especially, the positive practices of our culture and heritage, are told in our
perspectives and preserved for generations to come, and what a better way to do
this than through broadcast media.
It is a fact that in a developing country like ours, volumes of printed
information have a limited value, given the low literacy levels. Broadcast
media is therefore crucial given its wider reach. Moreover, not to imply that
literature and other communication mediums are not popular, a large percentage
of our younger generation watches a lot of television. It is in this context
that we see the value of productions such as "Voices of Africa" which bring
meaningful programmes on our television screens.
I have had the opportunity to watch excerpts from the series and am
delighted that all eleven official languages are presented by the poets and
that it covers provinces that are generally not favoured with exposure on
television, i.e. Limpopo, North West, Northern Cape, Free State and Eastern
Cape provinces.
The series further talks about challenges that we as a country are faced
with, for example, HIV and AIDS, people living with disability, and education.
These, I believe, affect people in different ways and productions like this one
helps in examining these issues and how they affect peopleâs lives. This is
important in creating awareness, opening discussions and finding solutions to
problems.
As we have gathered here today to launch the Voices of Africa series, we
acknowledge the important role that broadcast media play in informing and
educating our people. I know for a fact that South Africans of all ages and
background, will enjoy watching the 13 part series of "Voices of Africa", and
that at the end of the series, they will be better informed about their diverse
cultures. The series will bring entertainment, joy as well as information to
many television viewers, in a manner that will contribute immensely to
educating everyone in our country about our culture and heritage, and thus
contributing to social cohesion.
I commend the producers for their foresight in producing this innovative
series and for overcoming the challenges of finding the necessary funding to
make the production a reality. I truly hope that this is just a beginning,
because there are so many of our voices that must be heard and images of our
heritage that must be captured.
Thank you.
Issued by: Department of Arts and Culture
17 November 2006
Source: Department of Arts and Culture (http://www.dac.gov.za/)
