Minister N.G Kodwa’s speech on the occasion of Dr Mbongeni Ngema’s funeral at Durban ICC
Programme Director
The Ngema Family and Friends
Hon.Premier of the Kwa-Zulu Natal Province, Ms Dube-Ncube MECs herein present
Councillors
Clergy and Church Leadership The Creative Industry at large Government Officials Distinguished Guests Members of the Media
Ladies and Gentlemen
Sanibonani
On behalf of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture, let me take this opportunity to extent heartfelt condolences to the family yoNgema, duduzekani, akwehlanga lungehli.
In uMadlokovu, we are not only burying an artist, but we are burying a veteran of the liberation struggle acknowledging his role in the arts.
I would like to appreciate the role and contribution by The Playhouse and the Ngema family in the vibrant celebration of eliqhawe. Furthermore, I would also like to thank the Wednesday speakers for their frankness when sharing who Ngema was.
Now we need to engage on the question, what needs to be done in celebrating his legacy?
There is a need to establish a system or programme of Recognition and Acknowledgement as part of our vision. I will once again repeat what I always say, we need to give them flowers whilst they can still smell them.
Recently, I visited Paris and Russia where I discovered that they have been able to increase their budget for Arts and Culture because of its contribution not only to GDP but as a result of its contribution to nation building and social cohesion.
Notwithstanding the fiscus challenges we face as a country; we can also achieve same through amongst others crowdfunding by
mobilising private sector who in 30years of democracy have not made any significant contribution to the arts.
Programme Director, I would like to refer to the economic contribution of the creative sector.
The South African Cultural Observatory finds that the country’s creative economy contributes significantly to South Africa’s GDP, job creation and transformation agenda. Yet there is always room to do even more, to further grow the role of Arts and Culture to economic development.
South Africa’s creative economy contributes over 90 billion rand to South Africa’s GDP.
The South African Cultural Observatory also finds that the creative economy accounts for 6 percent of all employment in South Africa.
In terms of transformation, the South African Cultural Observatory found that around 87 percent of creative and cultural industry occupations were held by Black South Africans, with women occupying around 43 percent of jobs in this sector.
South Africa’s share of the contribution of Arts and Culture to its GDP is comparable to that of countries in BRICS, and countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom. Arts and Culture in these countries contributes between 3 to 5 percent to the GDP, yet somehow it seems these countries are able to leverage more on Art and Culture, and have it play an important role in economic development.
For example, Arts and Culture in the United States contributes about 1.02 Trillion US Dollars to that country’s GDP, supporting
4.9 million jobs.
Arts and Culture can create jobs, opportunities for investment, and drive collaboration with order sectors such as tourism and small business development.
Lastly, There is a need to find a way that the artists present a wayforward on how government could intervene when the industry find themselves in desperate situations.
I am therefore calling upon the Industry Principals to engage the Department to discuss the role the government should play in establishing a fund that will ensure sustainability. If such a fund was in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, the industry would
have been better cushioned against the harsh COVID conditions.
In conversations with Dr Kani, Sis Letta Mbulu and Mr Caiphus Semenya, they tell me that when they perform overseas, they get vetted by the Union and Home Affairs and they pay levies that go to the Union for funding of the industry.
As a country and as an industry, we need to think about a future that could enable us to create a strong gate-keeping policy to manage access by International artists that visit our shores for work.
If this could be achieved, we will have celebrated and kept alive Dr Ngema’s legacy.
Lala uphumule Mngadi, Madlokovu, Ntusi yenkomo, Nene, Muji, uSthenjwa!
