South Africa: Gayton Mckenzie Defunds 2026 National Arts Festival, Jeopardising 3,000 Jobs and Makhanda's Lifeline

6 November 2025
Daily Maverick (Johannesburg)
By Estelle Ellis

The National Arts Festival's application for funding to the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture for the 2026 event has been refused, Minister Gayton McKenzie said in a written answer to questions raised in Parliament.

The 2026 National Arts Festival will continue with the assistance of other sponsors, CEO Monica Newton said after the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture again turned down the festival's longstanding funding request.

"The National Arts Festival will take place from 26 June to 6 July 2026, supported by our longstanding partners, the Eastern Cape Department of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture and Standard Bank - and many other partners who have supported the festival for decades. It takes a nation to raise the National Arts Festival," Newton said.

She further indicated that the festival continued to engage with the national department on funding for the 2026 festival. Newton pointed out that the National Arts Festival was working in collaboration with several other festivals across the country, concerned about the current policy and funding environment.

In a response to a parliamentary question, Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie said the department wanted to support new provincial flagship projects. He said that...

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