Minister for Arts and Culture Nathi Mthethwa says government assisted over 59 000 beneficiaries during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He says at the same time, government helped retain over 38 000 jobs.
He says more than R800 million was spent on athletes, creatives and their entities. He was speaking during the debate on Heritage Day at the National Assembly.
Mthethwa also highlighted some of the designers whose careers his department helped launch, through its emerging artists platform. He says in total the platform has mentored over 500 designers.
‘Laduma Ngxokolo, also known as Maxhosa, who exhibited on this platform in 2013 amongst others he was named as one of the Vogue’s top designers in Africa. He exports all over the world. Thebe Magugu’s nack of retelling the stories of his home town and South Africa’s history made him the first African to win the prestigious Louis Vuitton prize in 2019.”
