CHINA AWAITS! FORMER NAC BENEFICIARIES ENCOURAGED TO APPLY
BUT WHY DIDN'T EVERYONE RECEIVE THE INVITATION?
The Creative Passport welcomes this fully funded opportunity to Beijing, but questions why some former National Arts Council beneficiaries received the invitation while others were seemingly left in the dark. Transparency should never be optional.
By Thami akaMbongo Manzana
A fully funded international opportunity to travel to Beijing, China, from 22 October to 11 November 2026 is not something that comes around every day.
The National Arts Council (NAC), in collaboration with the Embassy of the People's Republic of China, has circulated an invitation for participation in the China–South Africa Arts Innovation and Management Seminar. The programme promises valuable exposure to arts innovation, cultural management, digital technologies, organisational development and international cultural exchange, with airfare, accommodation, meals and local transport in China covered by the Embassy.
The Creative Passport welcomes initiatives of this nature. South African artists, cultural practitioners and arts administrators deserve greater international exposure and opportunities to build meaningful global partnerships.
For that reason, we encourage every former National Arts Council beneficiary who believes they qualify to submit an application.
But there is one significant concern.
This was not a public invitation.
Instead, it appears to have been emailed to some beneficiaries, while many others only became aware of it through colleagues and platforms such as The Creative Passport.
That raises an important question:
Who received the invitation, and who did not?
For a public institution entrusted with advancing the cultural and creative industries, equal access to opportunities should be beyond question.
Transparency is not a favour.
It is a governance obligation.
The Creative Passport Asked the National Arts Council for Clarity
Rather than speculate, The Creative Passport wrote directly to the National Arts Council seeking clarity on the eligibility criteria.
In response, Ms Julie Diphofa explained that the programme is intended for recent beneficiaries from the 2025 Project Funding cycle, and that selection would consider:
Eligibility and compliance with NAC contractual obligations.
Professional merit.
Skills transfer potential.
Representation and diversity.
Professional development potential.
She further confirmed that beneficiaries who participated in the previous China programme would not be considered for this cycle.
We appreciate the response.
However, the explanation answers some questions while creating many others.
Why Does the Invitation Say "Former Beneficiaries"?
The biggest contradiction lies in the wording of the invitation itself.
The advertisement repeatedly refers to "former NAC beneficiaries."
Yet the clarification limits eligibility to recent beneficiaries from the 2025 Project Funding cycle.
These are not the same thing.
A former beneficiary could reasonably include anyone who has previously received support from the National Arts Council, including through:
Annual Funding;
Project Funding;
Organisational Funding;
Bursaries;
Emergency Funding;
Special Projects;
Presidential Employment Stimulus Programme (PESP); or
Any other recognised NAC funding programme.
If the intention was to invite only 2025 Project Funding beneficiaries, why wasn't the invitation written that way from the beginning?
Words matter.
Especially when they determine who gets access to life-changing international opportunities.
Who Received the Email and Who Was Left Out?
Perhaps the most pressing question remains unanswered.
If this was not a public invitation:
How many beneficiaries received the email?
How were they selected?
Was every eligible beneficiary contacted?
Were both organisations and individual practitioners included?
Was there a complete and verified mailing database?
Were some disciplines prioritised over others?
Were beneficiaries from rural provinces and townships equally represented?
Many practitioners only learned about this opportunity because someone else forwarded the invitation.
Had they not, they would never have known it existed.
Surely that cannot be regarded as equitable access.
Why Such a Short Deadline?
Applications close on 20 July 2026.
That leaves only a handful of days for applicants to prepare:
a detailed motivation,
a curriculum vitae,
certified documents,
confirmation of previous funding,
and ensure they possess a valid passport.
For practitioners who have never travelled internationally particularly those from rural communities and historically disadvantaged backgrounds, this timeframe may effectively exclude them before they even begin.
Capacity-building programmes should remove barriers not unintentionally create them.
Who Developed the Criteria?
Ms Julie Diphofa outlined the criteria.
But the sector still deserves to know:
Who drafted these criteria?
Who approved them?
Did the Accounting Authority approve the process?
Was Executive Management involved?
Were Arts Development Officers consulted?
Good governance requires more than good intentions.
It requires documented accountability.
Who Will Adjudicate These Applications?
The invitation says nothing about assessment.
Who will evaluate applications?
Will there be an independent adjudication panel?
Will conflict-of-interest declarations be signed?
Will applicants ever know who made the decisions?
Transparency should extend beyond the invitation itself.
It should include the selection process.
What Is the National Arts Council Contributing?
The invitation confirms that the Embassy of the People's Republic of China will fund:
airfare,
accommodation,
meals,
and local transport.
This naturally raises another question.
What role, financially, is the National Arts Council playing?
If the NAC is contributing funds:
From which budget programme?
How much has been allocated?
Has this expenditure been approved?
Public institutions should always account for public resources.
What Did Last Year's Programme Achieve?
If this initiative has run before, the sector should know its impact.
Questions worth answering include:
How many practitioners attended?
Which provinces benefited?
Which disciplines were represented?
What knowledge was transferred back into South Africa?
Were impact reports produced?
What lessons were learned?
Capacity-building should always be measured by outcomes, not simply participation.
Can the NAC Manage This Process Fairly?
The National Arts Council has, on several occasions, cited capacity constraints during funding adjudications.
Yet this process requires:
application verification;
compliance checks;
adjudication;
selection;
communication of outcomes;
travel administration;
and visa preparations
all within a remarkably short period.
How will this be achieved while ensuring fairness and consistency?
Is This an Open Competition or a Closed Process?
These questions are not accusations.
They are questions that arise whenever communication lacks transparency.
When only some people receive an invitation and eligibility is explained only after questions are asked, speculation becomes inevitable.
People begin asking:
Were potential participants already identified?
Is this genuinely an open opportunity?
Or is the application process simply confirming decisions already made?
The National Arts Council can put these concerns to rest through greater openness.
The Creative Passport Encourages Every Former Beneficiary to Apply
Despite these unanswered questions, The Creative Passport strongly encourages practitioners not to disqualify themselves.
If you have previously benefited from National Arts Council funding, submit your application.
Include your previous project number(s), indicate the funding programme through which you were supported, and request written clarification if you are uncertain about your eligibility.
Let the National Arts Council determine eligibility not assumptions.
If enough former beneficiaries apply, the NAC will have an opportunity to clearly define who qualifies under the term "former beneficiary."
Share This Opportunity Across the Sector
The Creative Passport has deliberately chosen to share this opportunity as widely as possible because opportunities of this nature should never depend on whether someone happened to receive an email.
If you are a former National Arts Council (NAC) beneficiary, do not assume that you are ineligible. Apply and allow the National Arts Council to determine your eligibility.
How to Apply
Your expression of interest must include:
A detailed motivation explaining why you wish to participate in the seminar and how the programme will benefit you as a cultural practitioner and contribute to your organisation or the broader creative sector.
A one-page curriculum vitae (CV).
A certified copy of your South African Identity Document (certified within the last 12 months).
A valid South African passport.
If selected, approved candidates will be required to undergo a medical examination, and the National Arts Council will provide the required medical form.
The Creative Passport further encourages applicants to include the National Arts Council project number(s) of any previous project(s) for which you received funding, together with the funding programme under which you benefited. This may assist the NAC in confirming your beneficiary status, particularly given the uncertainty surrounding the term "former beneficiary."
Submission Details
Applications must be submitted electronically only.
Email: kululama@nac.org.za
Closing Date: Monday, 20 July 2026
Closing Time: 16:00 (South African Standard Time)
Late or incomplete applications will not be considered, and the National Arts Council has indicated that no exceptions will be made.
Outcome of Applications
According to the invitation, applicants should expect communication regarding the outcome by 31 August 2026. If you have not received feedback by then, you should consider your application unsuccessful.
For enquiries, applicants may contact the National Arts Council Arts Development Officers on 011 010 8886 or via kululama@nac.org.za.
Finally, please share this opportunity with fellow artists, cultural practitioners, arts organisations, community arts centres, festivals and anyone who has previously benefited from National Arts Council funding. A life-changing international opportunity should reach every eligible practitioner—not only those who happened to receive an email.
The Creative Passport will continue to celebrate opportunities that uplift South Africa's cultural and creative industries. At the same time, we will continue to ask difficult but necessary questions whenever fairness, transparency and equal access appear to be compromised.
Until the National Arts Council provides fuller clarity, we encourage every former beneficiary to apply, enquire, ask questions and exercise their right to access public opportunities.
China awaits.
The question is - who gets the opportunity to go and who decided who should even know about it?
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