The purpose of the paper is to start a conversation that will contribute to the recognition of CCIs as a significant economic sector and inclusion of the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture as a member of government’s Economic Sectors and Employment Clust
The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC) is mandated to provide leadership to the sport, arts and culture sector to accelerate its transformation and oversee the development and management of the sector. Its mandate is also to promote diversity, social cohesion and nation-building. To contribute to economic growth through job creation, the DSAC endeavours to mainstream the sports, creative and cultural industries in the economy. In this regard, the department increases market share and accelerates job creation through providing funding for projects in the Mzansi Golden Economy (MGE) Strategy, which aims to stimulate economic opportunities for arts, culture and heritage practitioners in poor and remote communities.
As will be demonstrated in this document, South Africa’s Cultural and Creative Industries (CCI) is an important sector in its own right (even though it is not formally recognised as such by Statistics South Africa). According to the South African Cultural Observatory’s (SACO) latest Mapping Study the sector contributes just under three percent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and six percent of total employment. The purpose of the paper is to start a conversation that will contribute to the recognition of CCIs as a significant economic sector and inclusion of the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture as a member of government’s Economic Sectors and Employment Cluster.
Culture and creativity are important ingredients of any society. This important not only for the social wellbeing of a nation but also plays and important role in its economic welfare. South Africa has a diverse and extremely rich cultural heritage. There is an abundance of creativity. More could and should be done not only to protect its heritage and culture, but also to promote economic development. The purpose of this position paper is to:
Provide evidence of the contribution of the CCI to the South African economy. Analysis the implication for economic planning and resource allocation if the CCI is not fully integrated into economic planning and included into the Economic Cluster. Make recommendations on how to include DSAC into the Economic Cluster. Define the type of contribution that DSAC can make to the Economic Cluster and economic planning in general.
Based on these factors this paper will present an evidence-based argument for the inclusion of the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture into the Economic Sectors and Employment Cluster.
Accordingly, this report has been structured to quantity the contribution of various economic sectors to the South African Economy. This is followed by an analysis of the contribution of the CCI’s to the South African Economy, which will quantify the significant contribution being made by the CCIs to economy and to other economic sectors. Based on the evidence presented the report will proceed to present a concluding argument for the inclusion of the CCI’s into the Economic Cluster.
