Press release
20 September 2007
Ministry of Culture
SEK 24 million in increased efforts for ethnic and cultural diversity and international cultural activities
Ethnic and cultural diversity
To further promote ethnic and cultural diversity, SEK 10 million will be allocated to this area from 2008. In light of the report Diversity is the Future (Mångfald är framtiden (SOU 2007:50), the Government intends to prioritise efforts, through greater multicultural experiences, to develop international networks and artistic exchange using the skills that are to be found in Sweden. The report is now being circulated for comment, after which the proposals will be considered.
International activities and international cooperation
Cultural cooperation plays an important role for the mutual exchange of knowledge and democratic development of society. A major proportion of central government support to international cultural exchange consists of development assistance funds.
The Swedish Arts Council has continued its task of working for internationalisation of its entire area of activities, with policy intelligence, coordination, grant allocation and information. The Government particularly wants to emphasise the importance of the Swedish Arts Council cooperating with actors in development assistance policy and other relevant policy areas.
To promote greater international cultural exchange, the Swedish Arts Council will be allocated a further SEK 3 million for international cultural activities. The international exchange programmes of the Arts Grants Committee should be further developed and the Government is therefore allocating SEK 4 million from 2008.
Central government funding of international exchanges and cooperation in the field of literature will receive an additional SEK 7 million from 2008. The Swedish Arts Council will be given responsibility for supporting the translation of Swedish literature and developing international literary cooperation Translation support will be extended to include non-fiction and, to a greater extent, literature for children and young people. Funding for international exchange activities for writers, translators and others etc will also be increased.
"Promoting continued ethnic and cultural diversity and international collaboration is important in an increasingly globalised world, which is clearly apparent in this year's budget for culture. I am also pleased to be able to present more extensive support to the translation of Swedish literature and the development of international literary cooperation. This means that Sweden will now have translation support that is worth its name. Translating Swedish writers into other languages and enabling their books to be read outside the country's borders is very important for the development of Swedish literature," says Minister for Culture Lena Adelsohn-Liljeroth.
Contact
Maria DupontPress Secretary to Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth
+46 70 358 77 91
