Business and Arts South Africa strengthens international engagement with upcoming trips to Mozambique and Zambia

"We're thrilled to be visiting Mozambique and Zambia again, with the support of our partners who are as committed to the establishment of sustainable creative industries," says BASA CEO, Michelle Constant. "We look forward to the broader learnings and the opportunities."

In a visit that is taking place in association with the National Arts Council of Zambia, the British Council Zambia and the British Council South Africa Connect ZA, Constant, and BASA and Head of Programmes and Development, Lonwabo Mavuso are headed to Zambia on 15 June.

The four-day visit is specifically focused on audience development and is an extension of the BASA and British Council Connect ZA Connecting Creative Markets Programme that was inaugurated in South Africa in 2014. Among the intiatives taking place during BASA's Zambian visit are audience development workshops in Lusaka and Kitwe. These will be facilitated by Ukhona Mlandu and Kim Sanssoucie who are both Fellows of the Connecting Creative Markets initiative that BASA is currently running in partnership with The British Council Connect ZA.

In addition to the workshops, BASA will be engaging with the Zambian public and private sector on ways of supporting and strengthening the creative sector through policy and institutionalised partnerships.

"We are excited to be partnering with the British Council Zambia and Business and Arts South Africa on this initiative," says Maanka A. Chipindi, Acting Director of the National Arts Council of Zambia.

"This is because we believe audience development is one of the most neglected areas of arts administration. Through this initiative we hope to provoke the minds of our arts managers to give some thought to this important aspect. We cannot have growth in the creative sector if we do not focus on the audience and their needs for this training we are targeting arts venues, promoters, artists and cultural managers."

Following the Zambian visit, Constant and Mavuso will head to Mozambique on June 22nd. In a project that is supported by the Mozambican Ministry of Culture and Tourism, European Union ACP & Media Agency Europe - Belgium. The two BASA representatives will continue their work to partner with the public, private and creative industry of Mozambique.

Explains Mavuso, "BASA's role in this project is to introduce ways in which both government and civil society, through the arts, can work effectively in stimulating private sector engagement in the creative industry of Mozambique."

Among the specific aims of the project, which BASA is spearheading together with the Mozambican Ministry of Culture, is building the capacities of culture sector professionals, through the development of a training manual and training workshops. The project is also aimed at improving the regulatory environment of the culture sector in Mozambique, through legal reviews and an analysis of the regulatory framework affecting cultural industries.

About BASA (NPC):

Business and Arts South Africa (NPC) is an internationally recognised South African development agency with a suite of integrated programmes implemented nationally and internationally. Business and Arts South Africa (NPC) encourages mutually beneficial partnerships between business and the arts, contributing to corporate success and securing the future development of the arts sector in South Africa. Business and Arts South Africa (NPC) was founded in 1997 as a joint initiative of the Department of Arts and Culture and the business sector as a public/private partnership.