ARTISTS in the various entertainment sectors in the province have called on the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport, Arts and Culture to create opportunities for them so that their craft can survive.
The artists, including writers, visual artists, actors and musicians, among others, gathered at the Playhouse Company in Durban yesterday for the Cultural and Creative Industry Imbizo hosted by the department.
This came after the department's MEC, Mntomuhle Khawula, noted the concerns of various stakeholders in the cultural and creative sector.
Speaking about the Cultural and Creative Industries Federation of South Africa (CCIFSA) in KZN, Phumelele Mngomezulu, the director of Arts Development in the department, said CCIFSA had been funded by them since 2021 and there was a memorandum of understanding between them which was signed annually.
In terms of their management role, there was an annual business plan and compliance documents submitted by CCIFSA at the beginning of every financial year.
- In 2021/22 they remitted R1.5 million.
- 2022/23 they transferred R1.5m.
- 2023/24 they allocated R1.5m but only transferred R750 000.
- This year, they allocated R1.6m. However, they had transferred half of it while the other half would be transferred after going through compliance and monitoring processes.
Mngomezulu said that some of the programmes listed in the CCIFSA business plans this year included artistic development programmes and a public arts installation and festival.
Gospel artist Sgwili Zuma lamented a lack of opportunities for artists living with disabilities, particularly albinism and he encouraged the department to be more inclusive of such persons.
Zama Nteyi, spokesperson for the Free KwaZulu-Natal Artists group which advocates for artists’ rights, said they wanted to get rid of “gatekeepers” in the industry.
“While it is not everyone in the system that is corrupt, we have picked up that there are mafias in the industry who are hiding behind art, but when you dig deeper, you can see that they are not artists but are corrupting the industry," Nteyi said.
The chairperson of the CCIFSA in KZN, Thokozani “Tzozo” Zulu, said they were transparent about initiatives undertaken by CCIFSA.
"We have been reporting to the members of the CCIFSA and we have quarterly meetings with other members (artists) and give them an update on all expenditures.
"We will continue with the plans that we have. People in the public are commenting as though the department just injected funds into the organisation, when in fact we approached them with a business plan for the funding," he said.
Khawula said he would be meeting with the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture in South Africa tomorrow for the first time, and would raise some of the grievances with him
He said that the department would do its utmost to try to resolve the challenges and would work towards ensuring that the KZN Music House fulfilled its mandate of adequately providing a platform for KZN artists.
“There is an existing policy that speaks about Art Councils. There was a conversation around it and I expressed my wish for it to be revised because I would also really like to have an input so that I do not just get a list of names, but to also know who is who and what their requests and roles are.
“We will revisit this and you as artists will also have an input,” said Khawula.
He said that while their biggest task was to unearth new talent, nurture it and then present it to the world, there appeared to be a clash.
“What I have noticed, which also upsets me, is that most artists want us to feed into existing talent.
“We also would like an opportunity to find new talent and make it grow, while also placing an emphasis on sustainability. The government is for the people and will work for the people, so we will work together to take the work forward,” said Khawula.