The electronic application service is aimed at cultural and creative practitioners who want to access funding to upstart businesses in the creative and cultural industry. The department aims to implement support for the projects and programmes from April 2020 to March 2021.

The change from manual to electronic applications comes as the world shifts towards the fourth industrial revolution. Concerns were raised in the past by applicants saying there is a lack in the monitoring of proposals, lack of communication, and misplacement or loss of applications in the manual process. The department says automating the process will enable them to track, trace and monitor turnaround times and speed up the process. In addition, bottlenecks can be identified earlier and all applicants’ identity numbers can be verified through an electronic services portal web service.

The open call for funding runs from 30 September – 11 November 2019. Only applicants in three Mzansi Golden Economy work streams, namely Cultural Events, Public Art, and Touring Ventures may apply. The electronic system enables Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) capabilities and will send updates/notifications to applicants through emails and/or SMS. The electronic services portal can be accessed through a link on the Department of Arts and Culture website. Guidelines for 2020/21 are also available on the website.

OFM News/Marvin Ntsane