Arts Council to start running in August
Goitsemodimo Kaelo | Friday June 17, 2022 15:31
While officiating at the Regional National Arts Festival exhibition opening (Gaborone, South East Region) on Wednesday evening at Thapong, the council's board chairperson, Thabo Brian Dithebe said they are making significant progress. Dithebe said the board has managed to develop the organisational structure and job profiles and has completed recruitment of the council's executive management.
The Arts Council’s responsibility, he said, is to coordinate governance, facilitate cultural exchanges with other countries and stakeholders, advise the government on matters relating to arts and culture, and encourage and facilitate the commercialisation of arts and cultural activities among others. “We have completed the first phase of recruitment and the structure, as well as job profiles. Going forward, the NACB will enhance this initiative by facilitating and encouraging individual Batswana to develop private galleries for both revenue generation and tourism purposes,” Dithebe said. However, Dithebe highlighted that they expect the council to be fully functional by next year.
This, Dithebe said, is a welcome development for stakeholders with a primary interest in the arts sector, as there have been concerns over delays. The major concern was that it had taken too long for the National Arts Council to function since the Minister of Youth, Gender, Sport, and Culture Tumiso Rakgare had appointed an 11-member board in 2021 to provide strategic direction and leadership to the new organisation.