Arts and Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa will meet Swedish Minister of Culture and Democracy Hon Alice Bah Kuhnke on Monday, 25 January 2016 at Freedom Park in Pretoria, Gauteng.

Minister Bah Kuhnke is responsible for democracy, the national minorities, civil society, the language and culture of the Sami people, discrimination, culture, media, human rights at a national level and faith communities.

Both countries agree on the importance of further promoting knowledge about the role of culture for sustainable development and in promoting tolerance, dialogue, freedom of expression and the democratic development of the society.

The two Ministers will discuss collaboration on various initiatives, including the “Time Travel” project co-ordinated by the Kalmar County Museum in Sweden which is a heritage education partnership that focuses on the use of local history and how this knowledge is used to benefit the local community. This project is active in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, the Northern Cape and the Western Cape and includes several institutions, among them, Freedom Park, Constitution Hill and the Hector Pieterson Museum.

Co-operation on projects between the Nordic Africa Institute and South African heritage institutions will come under discussion as well as Swedish participation in the Liberation Heritage Route as Sweden played an important role in the struggle against apartheid. Co-operation on the promotion of a culture of reading and the fostering of social cohesion will also be explored.

South Africa is a strategic partner of Sweden in Africa; and at this meeting further announcements will be made on the strengthening of South Africa – Sweden cultural relations.

Members of the media are invited as follows:
Date: 25 January 2016
Time: 09:30 - 11:30
Venue: Freedom Park, Pretoria

RSVPs: Baile Maunye, 071 047 6770, bailem@dac.gov.za    or Patience Mogomotsi, 071 680 6709, patiencemo@dac.gov.za

Enquiries: Ms Lisa Combrinck, 082 821 4886 LisaC@dac.gov.za

Issued by Government Communications (GCIS) on behalf of the Department of Arts and Culture
22 January 2016