By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor has apologised to the arts community for “any offence caused” by her comments during an interview with the US-based Council on Foreign Relations.
Several local organisations in the creative industries have criticised the minister for suggesting that young people in the African continent should prioritise careers in critical skills such as science and technology over pursuing arts.
In a short clip, Pandor stressed the need to increase the number of young people to be trained in “critical skills” in Africa.
“I don’t think we want more arts trainers; I’m sorry for the arts people,” she said in the interview.
“But I think, science is very important, technology and engineering because those are the skills that we desperately need as well in the finance and economic sectors. We need highly trained people and then information and communication technology, “she said at the time.
The Cultural and Creative Industries Federation of South Africa (CCIFSA), along with other organisations and artists, demanded an apology from Pandor for what they perceived as her attempt to undermine the arts interview.
In a statement , the minister’s spokesperson. Lunga Ngqengelele. said Pandor noted the statement from CCIFSA calling on her to apologise and she apologises for any offence caused by her remarks.
However, Ngqengelele said the minister’s comments were taken out of context because she was stressing “the need to increase the number of young people in what is often referred to as ‘critical skills'”.
“Minister Pandor apologises for any offence caused by her comments to the members of the Arts community…
“Minister Pandor was misunderstood as demeaning the arts, which was certainly not her intention,” read the statement.