eBusiness Weekly
Own Correspondent
The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has spearheaded the 2005 Convention Global Report on Reshaping Cultural Policy, and after a period of 13 years; produced a penetrating report with indicators for the implementation of sound and functional Cultural Policy around the world.
Across the Art Industry, there have been outcries made towards the viability, or rather, the practicality of a series of Cultural Policy documents generated over the last decade, with most of the attention being shed upon the fact that each draft had not been consultative to the key stakeholders of the Policy, that is, the practitioners.
Working from the UNESCO Report; the document provided findings based on Zimbabwe’s Cultural Development DNA; wherein various indicators were considered, delineating Benchmark and Descriptive Indicators to best provide points of measurement.
Gross Domestic Product, Employment and Household Expenditures were at the apex of the research, while tier down; Inclusive Education, Multilingual Education, Arts Education and Professional Training formed a much more graspable indication base.
What followed was the Standard-Setting Framework, Policy and Institutional Framework, Infrastructures and Civil Society in Governance indicators.
A view of the aforementioned indicators develops an understanding of the macroeconomic, intermediary and microeconomic spheres that guide Cultural practice, noteworthy, paying attention to the Human Resource base in the Cultural Industries with regards to economic and developmental opportunities of everyone within the Industry.
The institutional practice therein would be powerful in the facilitation of these key facets as the functionality of the industry would trickle down from a sound ministry responsible for culture, regardless of the tumultuous incarnations the culture ministry has had over the past decade.
When the basis for Curriculum Development on a Primary, Secondary, Tertiary and Higher Education level are to be examined; the reconfiguration of institutions meant to foster Cultural Development, such as Great Zimbabwe University, to a more Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) oriented cultivation, it can be noted that a retroactive path will be altered to the Cultural Industry, foremost, in satisfying the needs of the second tier in spurring Cultural Development, and beyond that, sound Cultural Policy.
The much amorphous aspects of the findings were enshrined in the fact that fourth to seventh tier practices were concernedly lacking data, that is, Participation in Going-Out Cultural Activities, Participation in Identity- Building Cultural Activities, Tolerance of Other Cultures, Interpersonal Trust and Freedom of Self-Determination.
Disturbingly, these indicators point out to the fact that there is little or no Export of Zimbabwean Cultural Product and unfortunately, the consumption of external Culture is frighteningly high against this vacuum of export.
Other indicators such as Gender Equality Objective Outputs and Perception of Gender Equality were well propelled from Government level with a favourable 61 percent score as perceptions are being broken with relation to practice and product output.
Freedom of Expression, Access and Internet Usage and Diversification of Fictional Content on Public Television were the following indicators; the former each scoring in the 60th percentile while the latter was indicated to be scoring poorly with 41 percent, translating to the fact that local consumption is yet to progress.
Of note, figures provided therein indicated that the coverage and publication of Visual Art content on Television platforms scored 26 percent; a dreary focus with regards any support of that particular sector.
The last indicator was Heritage Sustainability which focused on the safeguarding of intangible Cultural Heritage.
Therein, the exploits of departments such as the National Archives of Zimbabwe, National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe and the National Gallery of Zimbabwe were put under the lens.
The Parastatal nature of these organisations allows them to concentrate on the crucial matters around the Arts, Culture and Heritage Industry, however, without the proper Policy Guidelines, the communion with the productive part of the industry, which is, the participants, is heavily thwarted.
What then could be the approach that is to be adopted by the incoming Ministry? The point of departure becomes the Government’s awareness of the Industry, a fine example having been set by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, wherein the Minister Dr S. B. Moyo, has engaged Cultural practitioners and purchased artworks for that Department, which is a for all incoming Diplomatic Missions that other Governmental entities such as POTRAZ and Zimpapers have joined their Private Sector colleagues such as Metbank that have gone beyond expectations to project their visions through Art.
That sentiment addresses Identity Building and Self Determination as the acknowledgement of Cultural Products fuels a Self- Realisation in the working space that is, largely void in other Government Departments and Corporations that are based here in Zimbabwe.
