Hon Chairperson of the session, Deputy Minister of Arts and Culture, Dr Joe Phaahla, Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Arts and Culture, hon Babalwa Sunduza, hon members of the portfolio committee, hon Members of Parliament, Director-General Xaba and senior managers, chairpersons of our boards and councils, art, culture and heritage practitioners, business leaders here present, ladies and gentlemen, before I start, let me take this opportunity to bid farewell to our departed brother, former Minister Sicelo Shiceka. To his family and friends we say, akwehlanga lungehlanga. [We send our condolences]. May his soul rest in peace.
I am humbled by the opportunity to present the 2012-13 Budget Vote for the Department of Arts and Culture. We present our budget two days after the people of our country joined the rest of the world in celebrating Workers' Day. We will forever remember the heroism and sacrifices of the workers of our country. We recommit ourselves to the goal of defending the gains of the working people of our country, especially our cultural workers.
Hon members, just under a week ago we marked the 18th anniversary of freedom and democracy, under the theme: Working together to build unity and prosperity for all. On that important occasion we reflected on the progress we are making to build a nonracial destiny for all the people of South Africa, who are united in their diversity.
We also committed ourselves to continue building an economically prosperous society. The Department of Arts and Culture has declared the year 2012 the year of heritage. In this regard we will intensify the work we are doing to preserve our country's cultural heritage, paying particular attention to our liberation heritage. This year is also the year of the centenary of the oldest modern liberation movement in Africa, the African National Congress. The Centenary of the ANC is part of our tangible heritage, which we must preserve for current and future generations.
Over the past 18 years we have made significant progress in addressing the challenges of poverty and underdevelopment. However, many of our people, in particular women, the youth and those in rural areas, are still faced with these challenges on a daily basis.
We are pleased to report that as part of our Mzansi Golden Economy strategy a number of high-impact programmes, targeting youth and women in the arts, have been identified. These include the Indoni, My Heritage My Pride programme, which aims to provide young people with life-skills training, education and encouragement in appreciating who they are, their heritage and their culture.
We are also implementing the Trendsetter Initiative, through which we encourage the youth to participate in the arts, and thus contribute to the development of their communities. We have begun to implement the public art programme, through which we are providing young people with skills and employing them to beautify their communities by using their artistic abilities.
This year we funded the Emerging Creatives programme, providing an opportunity for 40 young designers to showcase their designs alongside established designers at the Design Indaba in Cape Town.
Having declared 2012 the year of heritage, we will continue to honour the heroes and heroines of our struggle for national liberation. We will also use heritage infrastructure development as a catalyst for local economic development, job creation and nation-building.
A total of 28 heritage projects have been identified for implementation during the current financial year. Working together with the Independent Development Trust, IDT, we have begun to implement our programme to refurbish the house of the former ANC President, O R Tambo, in Bizana. [Applause.] We are also erecting a statue of O R Tambo and refurbishing the Garden of Remembrance and an interpretive centre in Kantolo. An access road linking Bizana to O R Tambo's homestead will also be built. An initial amount of R25 million has been set aside for this project. This project is expected to create 50 permanent jobs, as well as 90 short-term, medium-term and occasional jobs.
We are proceeding with the development of the Ingquza Heritage Centre in Pondoland. This project includes the refurbishment of the Holy Cross Church in Ngquza Hill, of which OR Tambo was a member. The church will also be declared a heritage site. A total of R15 million has been set aside for this project. The project is expected to create 40 permanent jobs and 75 short-term, medium-term and occasional jobs.
The Waaihoek Church and Maphikela House in Mangaung have also been declared heritage sites. In February 2012 we launched the John Langalibalele Dube Legacy Project in Inanda, KwaZulu-Natal. More than R60 million has been set aside for this project, which is expected to create 270 jobs.
We will, in the coming months, open the Steve Biko Centre in Ginsberg, in the Eastern Cape. We have invested more than R170 million in this project, which has created 609 jobs to date. We have also declared the graves of Robert Sobukwe, Helen Joseph, Lilian Ngoyi and Charlotte Maxeke as national heritage sites. In the coming months the graves of Dr Beyers Naud and Rahima Moosa will also be declared national heritage sites.
This year we are celebrating the centenary of Alexandra Township and Sophiatown - now that is my hometown. Both of these areas have a rich history of struggle and were vibrant hubs of cultural and artistic expression.
We expect to officially open the Matola Monument and Interpretive Centre in Mozambique before the end of this year. We have invested R65 million towards this project. In Matola alone, we have created a total of 245 contract and 15 permanent jobs. Through this project we are strengthening the bonds of friendship and solidarity with the people of Mozambique.
We will also work with the Department of Correctional Services to implement the Gallows heritage project.
Later this year we will open the second phase of the Freedom Park Museum - Ixapo, to tell the South African story of precolonial times. Some of the work we are doing this year on the subject of heritage will form part of the National Liberation Heritage Route.
In line with our commitment to nation-building and national healing, we declared the Voortrekker Monument a national heritage site. We have also opened a road linking Freedom Park to the Voortrekker Monument, symbolising a new era of co-operation between the two institutions.
In order to restore the dignity of the San people and to promote national healing, we have repatriated the remains of Klaas and Trooi Pienaar from Austria, where they were illegally and criminally taken for so-called research purposes. A decent reburial of the remains of Klaas and Trooi Pienaar will be held later this year. We are well on track with the establishment of the Sarah Baartman Centre of Remembrance. We are investing R168 million in this project. The project is envisaged to create 230 contract jobs and 45 permanent jobs.
The creative economy is now at the centre of the international economic and development agenda. We too, in South Africa, have for some time now placed the creative economy at the centre of our endeavour to grow the economy, create jobs and build sustainable livelihoods.
It is for this reason that, through the Mzansi Golden Economy strategy, we have identified key policy interventions that will support the growth and development of the creative economy. We are, therefore, pleased to announce that our Mzansi Golden Economy strategy has been endorsed by National Treasury.
The Mzansi Golden Economy strategy seeks to enhance our sector's contribution to the national effort to create 5 million jobs within the next 10 years. Specifically through our public art programme and the establishment of the art bank, we will create 10 000 new work opportunities over the next three years.
We piloted the concept of a sourcing enterprise during COP 17, resulting in the creation of more than 8 000 direct work days over a two-week period. As part of audience development we are piloting five cultural precincts and information centres in five major cities.
Through this initiative we anticipate a baseline target of more than 2 000 new work opportunities. This is expected to grow significantly over the next three years. Targeted support will be provided to 26 major cultural events every year across the country, which will generate a baseline target of more than 2 000 work opportunities per event.
A recreational underwater museum in Kosi Bay will be developed. The museum is expected to boost adventure and cultural tourism for the West Coast. Working together with the Department of Basic Education, we are making progress in bringing back arts education in schools. [Applause.] Through this intervention we are targeting 3 000 new work opportunities over the next three years.
We are also making steady progress towards the establishment of the National Skills Academy for the Arts. We will work with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development towards the establishment of a cultural observatory to collect and analyse data within our sector.
Hon members, funding for film production has increased. Equally, support for documentary production has increased in 2009 and 2011. For every documentary film produced with a budget of R500000, we create at least 10 direct jobs. It is against this background that we will continue to increase funding for film and television productions.
We will also create access to local film and video products, increase the volume of film production and provide training and skills development opportunities. Our long-term vision is to establish a national film commission and streamline film funding through a film fund.
In order to strengthen the local music industry and to build sustainable livelihoods for local musicians, we facilitated a co-operation agreement between the Association of Independent Record Companies and the South African Broadcasting Corporation, SABC. This agreement will increase local music content in public broadcasting and ensure needle time for the creators of content. [Applause.] We are also working with the music industry, the Department of Trade and Industry, DTI, and law enforcement agencies to strengthen the fight against music piracy.
In the month of May we will celebrate Africa Day. Working together with the Department of International Relations and Co-operation we will ensure the successful hosting of Africa Day celebrations. In line with our commitment to building a better Africa and a better world, we continue to be active on the international front. This we are doing in order to promote our culture in other parts of the world and to grow the local creative and cultural industries.
In this regard, we have signed cultural agreements and programmes of co- operation with Spain, Argentina, the State of Palestine and Angola. We have also signed a film coproduction treaty with New Zealand. We are reviewing our cultural agreements with the United Kingdom and the United States of America, with a view to further strengthening those relations.
During the Cannes Film Festival this year we will sign a film treaty with the Republic of Ireland. In September this year the government of the State of Qatar will host a South Africa Week in Doha. During this period we will also sign a cultural agreement with the State of Qatar. We expect Cabinet will soon ratify the Charter for African Cultural Renaissance. The charter will allow us to strengthen the work done by the African Union on the cultural front.
In June this year we will host the South African leg of the SA-French Seasons 2012-13. The season is aimed at showcasing our cultures and strengthening cultural co-operation between our two countries. South Africa will, this year, host the African chapter of the Unesco Conference on World Heritage. The conference will give us an opportunity to develop a shared African perspective on the link between development and the preservation of current and envisaged World Heritage Sites.
Next year South Africa will once again participate in the prestigious Venice Biennale. We are in a process of securing permanent space at the biennale for South Africa. This will give certainty with regard to our intention to continue exporting our creative goods to major international markets.
As part of the work we are doing since signing a cultural agreement with Jamaica last year, we will this year participate in the 50th anniversary of the independence of Jamaica. We will use that occasion to showcase our culture to the people of Jamaica, with whom we share strong bonds of friendship and solidarity.
In conclusion, hon members, we are putting together a team of senior managers that will ensure the effective implementation of our programmes. We are confident that the goals we have set for ourselves, working together with you, will be realised. Our ultimate objective is to create better conditions for the production, distribution and consumption of the arts, culture and heritage so that they yield better and greater economic and social benefits for all. Thank you.