Programme Director
Your Excellencies
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen

It is indeed a pleasure and privilege for me to open the 2nd Arts and Culture Design Seminar hosted by the Ministry and the Department of Arts and Culture.

Let me take this opportunity , on behalf of the Government of the Republic of South Africa and also the Ministry of Arts and Culture, to extend a very warm welcome to everyone present here and those participating in the events of this Fashion Week, and a special welcome to all our friends from our sister countries.

I hope you will enjoy every minute of your stay in our beautiful country and experience the hospitality and “ubuntu” of the people of South Africa.

This seminar will run concurrently with the SA Fashion Week 2005 and will provide a platform for designers from all over South Africa and the African continent, the United States and Europe, to share ideas, exchange information and learn skills and just to network and build sustainable relationships.

The seminar also offers an opportunity to young emerging South African designers to be exposed to local and international trends and best practices in design in the areas of textiles, homeware, jewellery, interior design and other fashion apparel.

Alongside the seminar we will be running a design exhibition which is the outcome of design workshops held in four provinces during the months of April and May.

Our Department’s idea of investing in the South African Fashion Week is an endeavour to unearth, nurture and promote South African indigenous talents and to provide opportunities to those designers who would otherwise not be able to afford to showcase their best works and unique styles.

The purpose of platforms like these is also to stimulate the organic growth of authentic African traditions of design and craft through information-sharing, exchange of ideas and the creation of economic opportunities.

We encourage and reward innovation and creativity in this sector because we have come to realise that design is one of the important elements in our effort to address issues of poverty and unemployment in our country.

South Africa, as a new democracy and a developing economy, is faced with challenges of underdevelopment, inequalities, unemployment, poverty and diseases of poverty. Whilst our government has made significant strides to address these challenges, it cannot expect to resolve these challenges alone. It is, therefore, imperative for the private sector, industry and civil society to join hands with government in a collaborative effort to confront these challenges head-on and intervene decisively by, for example, promoting programmes, such as design.

There is undoubtedly a huge market out there for fashion designers in the mass market, in high-fashion department stores, in specialty stores and even with individual customers. This can be a gold mine for young emerging fashion designers.

Historically, the majority of the black people of this country were not involved in this sector, more so those living in the rural villages. In fact, they were structurally marginalized and that is why they are still novices in the various disciplines and in the business of design.

Design, of course, is not just a fun game or just something done to while away time. It can be described as the skillful and artistic process of making things or the invention of a product for a specific purpose or it can be features of an artistic or decorative work. It involves the application of inter-disciplinary technology to art, crafts, architecture, furniture, textiles, clothing, jewellery and various other fields.

Designers must, therefore, be people with a desire and a passion to create and invent things and combine their practical knowledge with their artistic ability to translate those seemingly abstract ideas into exquisite designer products.

Fashion Design, of course, has become by far the most accessible profession in recent times and has attracted many of our young people from disadvantaged communities. On the one hand, fashion design has a great potential to make a significant contribution to the development of skills, the creation of jobs and the generation of income. Yet, on the other hand, it can also act as a catalyst in preserving human dignity and shaping community identity and even our national identity.

We hope that this platform will, throughout the Fashion Week, help to raise the level of awareness about these matters and also create opportunities for designers and develop the much-sort-after skills through one of our learnership programmes, CreateSA.

We also have the Mzansi designer’s incubator, which is funded by our Department and provides training for young emerging designers in marketing, business acumen, advanced pattern-cutting and the whole value chain of fashion design.

Our Department has already embarked on a countrywide programme of design developmental workshops to inform people about the benefits of design and product development and how it can contribute to their livelihood and the economy broadly.

It is, therefore, heartening to see so many designers coming together in an effort to tackle some of the challenges in this sector.

There is, however, the issue of Intellectual Property which still presents a serious challenge for all of us. SA designers have never really entered this arena of contestation. I believe that we do have cases where designs have been copied or stolen and traded for a fortune without due compensation to the original designer. We need to be vigilant and pay urgent attention to this matter. We also need to encourage designers to patent their designs and register their trademarks.

Design in South Africa is still a fairly untapped market compared to its potential in developed economies. For example, if my information is correct, the UK’s combined wholesale revenue of UK Fashion design companies exceeds 600 million pounds. South African fashion designers are dynamic and I see no reason why we cannot excel in this field. I am sure that you will agree with me after you have visited our exhibition stand.

The nature of the design process on the value chain and the contribution it can make to the economy is often misunderstood or underrated by the business sector. Design is not only aesthetic. It can also be used as a tool for society to address the social and economic imbalances. It can be used to create wealth and boost the economy, and to do this, local talent will have to be exploited to its full potential to ensure our African designers are globally competitive.

We are now at a defining point in South Africa where people are looking at their culture and identity for inspiration and expression, be it in clothes, art or languages.

Taking the culture of targeted communities into consideration when designing and creating is now one of the major aspects of international development models. It is clear that indigenous knowledge systems, like culture, can be a tool for sustainable development because it creates and sustains community assets

We have started a process of consultations with a variety of role players in the design sector with a view to developing A Design Policy for South Africa. To achieve this, we need to first clarify for ourselves what we mean by design and so that we can make a compelling argument about its economic and social importance.

I want to reiterate what I said earlier, that design is central to economic development. Most of our research in Cultural Industries has indicated that design is critical to many aspects of our lives. It is for this reason that we have committed ourselves, as government, to supporting initiatives in the design sector.

Central to any programme that wishes to address development is the need to see communities, not in deficit terms merely as recipients only of government services but to see them, both rich and poor, as owners of assets. In many parts of the country, communities have access to natural and material resources, human resources, cultural assets, indigenous knowledge, traditions and customs that can be the key agents for sustainable social and economic development. Any development programme, which aims at creating work opportunities, must begin with these cultural and artistic assets. As a country, we need to invest in people.

Government needs to enter into partnerships working together with individuals and groups, product developers, managers, the private sector and civil society and promoting Fair Trade principals. We have to position ourselves to compete at the top end of the market.

If this industry is to change this trend, we need to start designing and producing unique South African products that are going to find functionality with both local and international consumers. This is only going to happen if we work together to professionalise, grow and broaden our industry.

In conclusion, I would like to commend the South African Fashion Week for this excellent initiative and for providing a platform for our creative and informative Design Seminar.

May the future bring many opportunities for us all in our pursuit of creative and sustainable development and may the Design Industry prosper.

And may you all have a very successful seminar and enjoy the South African Fashion Week 2005!

I thank you.

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