Programme director, MEC Maile
Deputy Minister of Arts and Culture, Dr Joe Phaahla
Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Enoch Gondongwane
Deputy Minister of Tourism, Ms Thoko Xasa
Chairpersons of the Portfolio and Select Committees Members of Parliament
MECs and MMCs responsible for arts, culture and heritage
Members of the Diplomatic Corps
Acting Director General, Ms Veliswa Baduza, and other senior managers in national and provincial government
Leadership and representatives of various arts, culture and heritage institutions
Representatives of business and labour
Practitioners
Honoured guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Introduction
I would like to welcome all of you to this historic summit on the role of arts, culture and heritage in the economy. This summit is taking place during the month of April; which is a historic month in the development of our young nation.
This is the month of our freedom and democracy; a month which signifies the birth of our new nation.
This year, we celebrate 17 years of freedom and democracy under the theme “Working together to unite the nation, promote democracy and protect freedom”
We celebrate the progress we are making, since 1994, to build a national democratic society; that is united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous.
This is a society that our forebears envisaged in 1955 when they declared that; “South Africa belongs to all who live in it; Black and White”.
Indeed as a young nation we are justified to celebrate that we have a vibrant, dynamic and ever changing society. The values that define our society are enshrined in our democratic Constitution.
We must celebrate that we have well-established institutions that support democracy and protect the rights of our citizens.
These include an independent judiciary, a robust and activist Parliament that continues to hold the executive accountable. We are also justified to celebrate the progress we are making to bring back the dignity of all South Africans, many of whom now have access to services and opportunities that they were denied in the past.
Programme director, our Constitution, which is a product of freedom and democracy, guarantees among others the freedom of cultural expression and of creativity.
It is also in this context that we have convened this historic summit on the cultural and creative industries during the month of April, the month of our freedom.
This summit is also taking place at the Newtown Cultural Precinct, itself a place of cultural and artistic expression.
Purpose of the summit
People of South Africa, we have met here at this summit to mark the beginning of a new era for the arts, culture and heritage sector.
Through this summit we wish to collectively place the cultural and creative industries at the forefront of our national priorities.
From now on, the arts, culture and heritage sector will take its rightful place; at the core of the national effort to build a socially inclusive society and to contribute to economic growth and job creation.
We contend that; a society with a strong sense of identity and social cohesion is necessary to create the conditions for economic growth and prosperity.
As we meet here today we are inspired that Cabinet has identified our sector, the creative and cultural industries, as one of the drivers of economic growth and job creation, in the implementation of the New Growth Path.
We are specifically emboldened that the Industrial Policy Action Plan 2 (IPAP2), identifies the cultural industries, in particular the craft sector, music, jewellery production, clothing, leather, footwear and textile as some of the sectors that will be subjected to focused and significant support by the state.
We must therefore out of this summit come up with a clear plan that we will take to Cabinet so that as a sector we can make our own contribution to the national effort to grow our economy and create jobs.
Equally, the plan that will emerge from this Summit must guide the work we do as various stakeholders to reposition our sector.
Pogramme director, this summit will not become a talk shop. Neither will it become a complaints session.
We are here to craft a new path for our sector; a path that requires that we fundamentally change the way we do things. People of South Africa, from this summit we must be able to say in one voice that; our approach to arts, culture and heritage will never be the same again.
Work done thus far in the sector
Programme director, our task at this summit is not to reinvent the wheel.
We must build and improve on the work that has already been done in the sector.
In this regard, our discussions must take into account the recommendations and work done as part of the 1996 White Paper on Arts and Culture, the 2007 Legislative Review as well as the 2009 policy review.
We must also draw lessons on how other countries have used arts, culture and heritage to promote greater social cohesion, as a prerequisite for building more prosperous societies.
These are societies characterised, among others, by higher levels of development, economic growth and job creation.
In particular, we must continue to draw lessons from countries such as China, India, Brazil, the United Kingdom and Italy; where this sector has proven its worth as a “golden economy”; capable of driving growth and job creation.
We must use these examples to develop our own approaches that take into account our unique conditions.
The role of arts, culture and heritage in the economy and in skills development
Programme director, to illustrate how our sector can contribute towards promoting prosperity; allow me to quote the words of Gcina Mhlope; a storyteller, a playwright, an author and a poet who in a recent interview said, “I didn’t start out life as I am today, having what I have now. I know poverty – the scuffed, badly fitting shoes, the washed-out shirts. That was me. Books can change lives, just like they changed mine.”
According to a recent report of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), in the years leading up to the economic downturn, from 2002 to 2008, global trade in goods and services from the creative industries grew at an average 14 percent annually.
This happened even after taking into account the sharp contraction of world demand and international trade in the final months of 2008.
In the period leading up to the global recession, world exports of visual arts doubled in six years, reaching $29.7 billion in 2008.
The same trend was noticed for exports of audiovisual services, which amounted to $13.7 billion in 2002 and reached $26.4 billion in 2008.
In many advanced economies, the creative economy is now recognized as a leading sector in generating economic growth, employment and trade.
In the United Kingdom in 2007 the creative industries accounted for 6.2 percent of the national economy.
During the period from 1997 to 2007, creative output grew at 5 percent annually as compared to a 3 percent growth for the rest of the UK economy.
In fact, employment in the European (EU) cultural sector generally grows faster than elsewhere in the economy.
At present, it is estimated that the cultural and creative industries contribute around 2.6 percent of the total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the European Union, providing quality jobs to around 5 million people across the 27 EU member States.
In the developing world, an interesting new study of the value chain associated with carnival festivities in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil reveals that this famous celebration has an annual turnover estimated at $ 600 million.
The Carnival provides job opportunities for nearly half a million people.
Programme director, it is this performance that we must seek to emulate in our country.
There is no reason why a country such as South Africa, with 8 World Heritage Sites, cannot use its heritage to promote tourism, economic growth and job creation.
Drawing lessons from cities such as Florence in Italy we must fully exploit the linkages that exist between heritage and tourism.
The City of Florence, a place with an immense cultural and artistic heritage expressed in its numerous churches, palaces, art galleries, museums, villages and piazzas; is one of the most visited cities in the world.
We must also continue to draw lessons from the initiatives taken by the Chinese government to position culture at the center of efforts to further develop their society.
In addition, the story of our liberation struggle is of international interest.
Equally the story of the “South African miracle” continues to be of relevance even today.
These stories must be told to current and future generations, both locally and internationally.
The progress we are making to heal the wounds of our unhappy past continues to inspire generations across the world.
It is these stories that form the core of who we are as a nation, that are part of our heritage that we must continue to tell through films, documentaries, books, theatre performances and other artistic forms of expression.
As we tell these stories to ourselves and the world, our artists will have an opportunity to build for themselves sustainable livelihoods.
Most importantly telling our stories will contribute towards building greater social cohesion, promote national healing and thus pave the way for prosperity in our country.
It is in this context that we have submitted a proposal to Cabinet for the establishment of a National Liberation Heritage Route.
The Liberation Heritage Route will serve as a monument, telling the story of the many sacrifices and struggles by generations of freedom fighters both in our country and outside our country.
Also of significance about the Route, is that it is intended to benefit local communities, taking advantage of the linkages that exist between heritage and tourism.
Programme director, at the center of our drive to unleash the potential of the arts, culture and heritage sector is the need to pay attention to the development of the necessary skills base required to sustain the sector.
In this regard this summit must consider the proposal we are putting forward for the establishment of a national skills academy for the arts.
This initiative is aimed at addressing the supply side gaps experienced in the sector.
The initiative will also lay the foundation for the sustainability of the sector.
People of South Africa, this summit must pronounce loud and clearly that; arts and culture must receive more attention in our schools.
This we must do fully conscious of the reality that; arts education in schools is central to the strategic objective, not just of developing talent, but also of audience development; which is critical to the sustainability of our sector.
In many countries, education in the arts and humanities has been proven to contribute to the overall intellectual development of the young mind.
Programme director, during this summit a number of specific proposals, with time frames for implementation will be made.
These proposals are aimed at strengthening the contribution of the arts, culture and heritage sector to the New Growth Path.
Of significance is that we look forward to listening to you and working together with all of you in the implementation of these proposals.
Let this summit be the beginning of a journey where we work together to improve the performance of our sector.
Let this be the start of a process of changing perceptions about our sector for the better.
Let this summit mark a new beginning for our sector.
We look forward to your contribution towards the success of this historic summit.
Thank you.
Source: Department of Arts and Culture
