Parliament's urgent intervention to protect arts funding

PRESSURE is mounting to resolve the ongoing strike at the National Arts Council of South Africa (NAC), with Parliament warning that the disruption could cripple support for artists and stall key programmes across the country.

- KARABO NGOEPE

The Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture is set to urgently intervene this week, as the strike enters its sixth day with no resolution in sight.

Committee chairperson Joe McGluwa said the situation is becoming increasingly serious, particularly given the role the NAC plays in sustaining artists who rely on funding to survive.

"This is the last government entity that should experience disruptions," McGluwa said ahead of a scheduled committee meeting on Tuesday (today). "We cannot afford another day of this prolonged."

The NAC is a key funding body that supports artists, cultural organisations and community projects, many of whom depend on grants as their primary source of income.