The National Arts Council of South Africa (NACSA) is pleased to announce that it has signed a ground-breaking Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Arts Council of Botswana (NACB) to strengthen the creative and cultural sectors in both countries.
The event took place on the 20th of February 2024, in Newtown, Johannesburg, at the NAC head office. Ms. Julie Diphofa, the interim CEO of the National Arts Council of South Africa (NAC), welcomed Ms. Obenne Mbaakanyi, the Director of Creative and Cultural Sector Development for the National Arts Council of Botswana, and her delegation for the formal signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two organisations.
The MoU will see both countries work together to develop arts and culture practitioners with the aim of preserving indigenous and cultural heritage. The objective of the MOU is to promote and facilitate Cultural and Creative Exchange Programmes, Heritage Preservation, Arts Education Partnerships and Residencies, Institutional Exchanges, Internship and Training Programmes and Research and Development Projects.
In her keynote address, Ms Julie Diphofa echoed the following sentiments “It gives me great pleasure to celebrate the collaboration between the NAC Botswana and NAC South Africa. This partnership marks a significant step towards fostering mutual understanding, appreciation and the development of arts and culture between our two nations. The collaboration itself will encompass a wide range of activities including research initiatives that will deepen our understanding our each other’s artistic traditions and cultural heritage. Through these research projects, we aim to create platforms for sharing knowledge and insights that will enrich our artistic practices.”
The NACB’s Director of Creative and Cultural Sector Development, Ms. Mbaakanyi also expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the National Arts Council of South Africa for seeing the great value in this historic partnership. “Our nations have major commonalities, and it is great to see the two countries come together to harness the future of the arts and culture sector. This is a celebration of our diversity and an opportunity to learn from each other and inspire each other. This collaboration is the first step in the right direction to ensure that both nations’ artistic industries benefit and see tangible results.”