IT TOOK two days of intense dialogue, debate, delving deep and engagement, but in many ways the tone for a new view of the creative and cultural industries in South Africa was set by academics, thinkers, creatives and practioners – who, unusually, came together to talk ‘counting culture’.
Here is a summary of some of the big take-outs from the South African Cultural Observatory’s first national conference in Port Elizabeth this May.
One of the SACO’s main responsibilities is the work to quantify the value of the creative and cultural industry and economy. But it’s simply not that easy. A lot of the inherent value in arts, culture and heritage is intangible. That said, the counting must be done – and there are some real best practice examples of how to do this. Gabriel Zamfir from the Canada Council of the Arts shared some of the ways his institution is managing to count culture. For some great examples:
There was much discussion about South Africa’s cultural milieu and the value it has to offer through festivals, performing arts, heritage and museums, and in general its economic currency – but interestingly, without the on the ground data, as Avril Joffe from the University of Witwatersrand argued, case studies are critical for the development of indicators to measure. That’s why the SACO is so intent on promoting the National Research Agenda to bulk up case studies across the industry to inform how we map it.
It’s no surprise for anyone who has read Richard Florida that cities – with the right set of ingredients – can be the site for creative bubbles. While bigger cities flush with talent, technology and tolerance may have the edge – the question was asked at the conference, what smaller cities and rural areas could do to amplify their creative potential. Much conversation centred on the site and how power and change can emanate from here – or how it can be contested.
Africa may be the final frontier for the developed world to find new markets, but in many ways Africa is also ‘finding itself’ by drawing on its past – using arts, culture and heritage in particular – to shape new narratives. Creative at the core, there is no shortage of amazing cultural diversity and creative thinking. Two delegates from Zambia, Bruce Ernest, and Botswana, Tumiso Mabusela, shared their journey to help put the CCI front and centre in their countries.
The meteoric rise of interest in and promotion of the creative and cultural industries has not escaped South Africa or the continent. Unlocked by the power of global reach via the internet, culture – how it is displayed, portrayed, lived and experienced – is accessible by more people now than ever before. But with great access, comes great responsibility. The SACO’s primary role is to map this growth – and the associated economic benefits. The development of a framework for cultural statistics is a critical cog in this wheel and will define how we see the industry in the future – see Prof Jen Snowball’s paper on this when it is released soon.
Click here for the conference programme.
A full summary of the Counting Culture 2016 proceedings will be published in June/July together with papers, presentations and other related data. Watch this space for more.
Johannesburg, September 3, 2026 - The South African Cultural Observatory (SACO) will share the findings of its "Cultural and Creative Industries Economic Trends over the last 10 years” review report at the Creative Cnergy Policy & Investment Symposium 2026, taking place on Thursday, 03 September 2026 at AlexForbes, Sandton, in a fireside chat with Prof. Pitika Ntuli.
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