Business and Arts SA Awards finalists named

Celebrating two decades since its inception, the Business and Arts South Africa (Basa) Awards has announced 44 finalists for this year’s ceremony.

This will take place at the Nirox Sculpture Park in Johannesburg on September 17. In the 11 award categories, the likes of Rand Merchant Bank, Cape Town Tourism, the SA Taxi Foundation and Saint-Gobain Construction Products South Africa are nominated.

Basa aims to marry the arts and the business sector. For 20 years, they have made great strides.

Said Basa chief executive Michelle Constant: “When I started with Basa, it was a small organisation. There were only three people working there. Now there are 14. We’ve expanded in very interesting ways. 

"We focus on four areas. The one is growth, which focuses most directly on the arts sector. It works towards accessing agency and providing access for arts organisations.

“The second area is around connectivity and that works closely with the private sector on their engagement with the art sector.

"The third space is research. We have 20 years’ worth of research on the arts landscape and the private-public landscape.

"The fourth area is celebration, which is what these awards are about. It’s about recognising and celebrating the private sector.”

Visit basa.co.za for more information.