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Presenter

Mr. Vusithemba Ndima

Chief Director: Heritage

BRIEFING TO PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON

HERITAGE MONTH 200721 AUGUST 2007

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THE THEME The theme is “Celebrating South African Poetry (with special

emphasis on Indigenous Languages)”.

STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES To promote a culture of reading and writing, to revitalize South

African languages and literatures both in their oral and written forms,

To stimulate the growth and development of South African literature in indigenous African languages

To create new audiences, especially amongst the youth. To highlight the role of oral narratives such as poetry, play in the

transmission and preservation of culture and history from one generation to another.

To use poetry as a vehicle to transmit the ideals of Ubuntu, Nation Building and Social Cohesion

HERITAGE MONTH 2007

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1. LAUNCH OF HERITAGE MONTH The Heritage Month Launch will be held on 8 September

2007 in Cape Town, the proposed venue is KwaLanga. It will be hosted by the Department of Arts and Culture, the

Western Cape Province, and Cape Town Metro A small focus/working group has been established to

conceptualise the launch Such a working group will comprise of high profile poets

such as Don Mattera, Willie Kgositsile and others A comprehensive programme will be shared with you once

it is ready It is envisaged that preference will be given to local poets in

the Western Cape ProvinceCont/

SCOPE AND IMPLEMENTATION: HERITAGE MONTH ACTIVITIES

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2. PROVINCIAL POETRY WORKSHOPS It is envisaged that poetry workshops will be

held in all nine (9) provinces as build up processes to the Heritage Day Celebrations.

These workshops are designed to groom young poets in the art and skill of writing poetry

The National Poet Laurette, Prof Kgositsile will be assisted by 10 seasoned South African poets

Partnership and collaboration with the SABC Lentswe Project

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3. NATIONAL HERITAGE DAY CELEBRATIONS, 24 SEPTEMBER 2007

The National Heritage Day Celebrations will be held on24 September 2007 in Mangaung, Free StateProvince OFFICIAL PROGRAMME Welcome address Keynote Address Vote of thanksCULTURAL PROGRAMME A blend of music and poetry A poetry evening is also envisaged for 23 September at PACOFS

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JOINT PLANNING COMMITTEE: The Department of Arts and Culture Free State Province The Department of Education, Free State The South African National Defence Force The Presidency The Presidential Protection Unit

Cont/

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 2007 HERITAGE DAY CELEBRATIONS

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The South African Police Service National Heritage Council The South African Heritage Resources Agency Bloemfontein Municipality WordFest Timbila Poetry Project Poetry Africa Bhala Writer’s Guild Poets

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The services of an events management company will be secured by mid August 2007. The service provider will handle the following key logistical aspects of the event:– Marquees, tents and chairs for VIP sitting– Lunch for the VIPs– Public catering– Tents for the artists, the elderly and the disabled– Safety and security– Stage and podium– Sound system and daylight screens with the necessary

backup systems– Power and back-up generators

LOGISTICS

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The role of the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture in the Free State and the local municipality

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AND MOBILIZATION

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RADIO AND TELEVISION A Marketing and Communication strategy will incorporate

interviews on radio and television. An Outside Broadcast will broadcast the Heritage Day proceedings on 24 September 2007. This will be mainly a partnership between the DAC and the SABC. The interviews will be part of the Communication Strategy

NEWSPAPER ADVERTISEMENTS: The strategy will incorporate the placing of advertisements

in various national, provincial and local newspapers

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

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THANK YOU