PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON ARTS & CULTURE MEETING WITH THE SWEDISH DELEGATION ON COMMITTEE EXPERIENCES & POSSIBLE CULTURAL COOPERATION Chairperson Xoliswa Sandra Tom Committee Whip Jabu Mahlangu

Overview of South Africa Population of 55 million people as of 2016 Constitutional Democracy since 1994 Thirteen elected represented parties and 400 Members of Parliament at national level Over 500 parties participated in the 2016 local government elections in the 9 provinces One province run by an opposition party 11 Official Languages

ROLE OF PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEES Parliament’s 2 houses, the National Assembly (NA) & the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), conduct work in plenary sessions (where Members of a house meet together in one group) in joint sittings (where Members of both houses meet as one group), & in Committees (smaller groups of Members). Working in Committees allows Parliament to: Increase the amount of work that can be done Ensure that issues can be debated in more detail than in plenary sessions Increase the level of participation of Members of Parliament (MPs) in discussions Enable MPs to develop expertise & in-depth knowledge of the specific Committee’s area of work Provide a platform for the public to present views directly to MPs, something which is not possible in a plenary sitting of Parliament

3. REGULAR WORK OF COMMITTEES Monitor & oversee the plans, budgets, implementation and reports of national government departments & related government bodies Consider & amend Bills, & may initiate Bills Consider private members’ & provincial legislative proposals & special petitions Consider international treaties & agreements Examine specific areas of public life or matters of public interest Address domestic parliamentary issues  Have the power to summon any person or institution to appear before them, give evidence or produce documents. Receive petitions, representations or submissions from the public. Propose amendments to future budgets of Departments and Entities in the form of Budget Review and Recommendation Reports

2. GOVERNMENT BODIES OVERSEEN BY THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON ARTS Department of Arts and Culture (DAC) National Heritage Council National Arts Council National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) South African Heritage Resources Agency Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) Performing Arts Council of the Free State (PACOFS) Museums: Afrikaanse Taal-Museum, Iziko National Museum, KwaZulu-Natal Museum, English Literary Museum, Msunduzi/Voortrekker and Ncome Museum, National Museum Bloemfontein, Luthuli Museum, Nelson Mandela Museum, Ditsong Museum, Robben Island Museum, Boer Republics War Museum Libraries: South African Library for the Blind, National Library of South Africa National Gallery, William Humphreys Gallery Freedom Park Theatres: Artscape, Playhouse Company, Windybrow Theatre, Market Theatre, South African State Theatre.

4. RECENT MEETINGS OF THE COMMITTEE Social cohesion & nation building; Nelson Mandela museum; Infrastructure / Legacy projects; Capital works project challenges: DAC & Public Works White Paper revision progress & Official Languages Act implementation; National Archives DAC on its Quarterly performance Pan South Africa Language Board & Performing Arts Centre of Free State Roadies Association on settlement agreement & challenges; Committee Report on Arts & Culture Budget National Heritage Council & National Film & Video Foundation on their 2016 Annual Performance Plans DAC Internal Audit Committee, PACOFS, Ditsong on their 2016 Annual Performance Plan & five year Strategic Plan DAC on its 2016 Annual Performance Plan: Auditor General briefing State of Archives & Challenges in South Africa: National Archivist briefing; Department of Arts & Culture on 2015/16 3rd Quarter performance DAC on dissolution of PanSALB Board way forward & Community Art Centres & Windybrow Theatre

5. CURRENT BASIS FOR CULTURAL EXCHANGE WITH SWEDEN Formal relations between Sweden and SA from 1930s: SA legation opened in Stockholm. Relations upgraded to ambassadorial level in 1994. Sweden strongly supported the struggle for democracy in SA during the apartheid period. A SA– Swedish Binational Commission was inaugurated in September 2000 by then President Mbeki and Prime Minister Göran Persson. Swedish Embassy promotes music and other cultural exchanges between Sweden and SA. The Svenska Institutet (SI), together with the Swedish Arts Council, has supported activities promoting international cultural exchanges. Swedish International Development Authority (SIDA) contributions to international development cooperation including arts in culture in the past. The Swedish Arts Council Swedish–SA Cultural Partnership Programme. In SA, the equivalent lies with the DAC Sweden is part SA-EU Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) since 11 October 1999

Tack Så Mycket Thank you Dankie Ngiyathokoza Ke a leboha Siyabonga Inkomu Ro livhuwa Enkosi Ngiyabonga