Here’s how much the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture spent on creating 24 000 jobs
· Citizen
The creative arts and culture industry is set to receive several hundred million rand worth of support over the next two years.
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The Presidential Employment Stimulus Programme (PESP) is in its sixth and seventh iterations after its launch in 2020.
The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture appeared before its portfolio committee on Friday, where it outlined the expenditure and objectives for the current and upcoming programmes.
Funding is channelled through the National Arts Council (NAC) and National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), which screen applicants and adjudicate grants.
“Applicants are encouraged to propose projects that will create employment opportunities in the sector, as well as have a multiplier effect in the creation of employment opportunities beyond the sector itself,” the department states.
Roughly R14 400 per job created
For the 2025-26 financial year’s budget, a combined R347 million was allocated to the NAC and NFVF with a jobs target of 31 000.
The NFVF received R230 million and approved 267 projects, but fell short of its 15 640-job target, creating only 12 265 jobs.
For a jobs target of 15 360, the NAC received R117 million, approved 435 projects, and created 11 704 jobs across 14 dance, craft, literature, music and theatre projects.
These approved projects were only due to commence this September, with the eleven months since the application window closed being used for adjudication, consultation and training meetings.
A seventh phase of the programme, PESP7, has been allocated R400 million, with the adjudication process concluding in August.
“The PESP intervention has provided an important mechanism for supporting employment within the sector and enabling artists, cultural practitioners, creative organisations and other stakeholders to continue participating in economic activity.
“The focus remains on ensuring that funding translates into measurable employment opportunities, meaningful sector outputs and sustainable benefits for creative practitioners and organisations,” the department stated.
Tiered support
Applications for PESP6 were accepted between September and October 2025 based on three qualifying tiers.
Major art or culture projects would be granted R800 000 on the condition they could propose at least 70 job opportunities.
Medium-scale projects must propose at least 40 job opportunities to qualify for a R500 000 grant, with the third tier’s R300 000 grant “assessed based on the artistic merit of the project at the discretion of panel members” making the adjudication.
“Projects should demonstrate the ability to be sustainable over a period of time.
“Applications must detail the number of artists to be employed, national footprint, capacity building element, audience development and should focus on youth participation and inclusion of vulnerable groups as beneficiaries,” the department states.