CISP Grant Fuels Cultural Renaissance

By John Owoo

A European Union grant to the cultural sector in Ghana has seen a surge in fresh innovation among artists, promoters, arts administrators, craftsmen, policy makers and other cultural stakeholders in the country. The 2 million Euro grant to the government led to the creation of the Cultural Initiatives Support Programme which has been at work since the beginning of 2007. The three year programme ends in December 2010.

Speaking to me in an exclusive interview in Accra at the weekend, Mr. Kwasi Gyan-Apenteng, Programme Coordinator of CISP said that the CISP was created through a bilateral agreement between Ghana and the European Union and the Programme works under the auspices of the National Commission on Culture. He explained that the Programme has five main results, namely the development of knowledge, information and capacity for analysis; reinforcement of competences and skills; Improvement of dialogue; sensitisation and mobilization of cultural stakeholders, and the realisation of relevant cultural initiatives.

Over the past two years, the Programme has undertaken some major activities and initiatives in the country such as the following:

• The CISP has initiated the inventorisation of Ghana’s cultural heritage, assets and initiatives and at the moment we are only gathering information on the people in the cultural sector and their activities. At least 50 districts would have been inventoried by the end of the Programme next year.
• Training workshops have been conducted for nearly 300 people in such fields as administration and management of cultural institutions, finishing techniques for crafts, theatre technicians, radio, stage and television scriptwriters, and journalists.
• The programme has organized seminars and encounters for Members of Parliament, senior news executives in the media houses, and executives of various cultural civil society organisations across the country.
• The Programme has launched the newly published Ghana Culture Magazine which hopefully will serve as a valuable platform for exchange of ideas, networking and dialogue, and above all exposing Ghana’s culture and heritage at home and abroad.
• The programme has organised workshops on major cultural themes such the Future of Highlife, Culture and Disability and Culture, Witchcraft and

Perhaps, the Programme’s most eye-catching activity is the provision of direct grants to individuals and organisations to carry out their own projects and activities in all the artistic disciplines. Explaining how the grants work, the Coordinator said that there are two types of grants: Small Grants and Big Grants. “Under the Small Grants, 50 grant recipients have either completed or are completing their projects under the first call for proposals and another 60 recipients have only recently signed their contracts and will soon start working on their projects”.  On the Big Grant, he explained that  four grants have been given for projects in broadcasting, contemporary arts, literature and crafts.

There will be another Small Grants call for proposals next month, which means that by the end of the Programme, more than 150 individuals and organisations will have benefited from CISP grants. “It is pleasing to note that nearly half of all grants involve the training of young people in textiles, leather, basketry, music, dance, and all the creative arts. Most of the others are also community activities; therefore the impact of the more than 150 grant is far greater than the number would suggest”.

 “Numerous projects supported by the CISP encompass the performing arts, literature, film/video, heritage and the visual arts. They involve capacity building, workshops, seminars, creation of artistic/publication of literary works and the preservation of aspects of our cultural heritage. Apart from the positive impact on the economy, CISP has among other things ensured the revival of some cultural practices that are getting extinct – these include food, clothing, drinks and games. It has also resulted in better organizational and accounting practices among cultural groups owing to strict reporting demands by CISP”, he said.

 For the future, the Coordinator said the last year of the Programme has exciting activities lined up. “As part of the centenary celebration on the birth of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president, CISP will organize three lectures that will examine his cultural policies while recognizing the solid foundations he laid for the arts in Ghana. These would be held in Accra, Kumasi and Tamale. The Coordinator revealed that a major choral music festival in Accra would be the final CISP activity sometime in June or July next year. He said that a massed choir singing Yen Ara Asaase Ni would be a fitting curtail fall for the Programme.

The Coordinator would not be drawn on whether the Programme would be extended. “I really cannot say because that is above my range. That would depend on what happens between the government and the European Union. I believe that all those of us involved in the Programme have worked hard to make it a success and on that basis, there could be room for optimism, but it said on the packaging that this is for three years and we will continue to make them three great productive years for Ghana’s cultural sector.