Culture Action Europe - MFF, more support for the cultural sector

Culture Action Europe launched a campaign in order to increase the EU budget for the cultural sector.

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Culture Action Europe (CAE) - the biggest umbrella organisation and the only network representing all cultural sub‐sectors - launched a campaign for ensuring that 1% of the budget of each EU policy field is allocated to culture. This campaign aims to influence the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), that takes effect after 2020 and shapes the annual budgets of the EU, covering typically 7 years.

Creative Europe isn't enough

The current MFF enables the European Union to spend up to 959.99 billion EUR (all amounts on this page are indicated in 2011 prices) in commitments and 908.40 billion EUR in payments over the years 2014-2020. 

Creative Europe, the main EU programme dedicated to culture, represents 0.14% of the EU total budget (2014-2020), out of which only one third (31%) is earmarked for culture. Despite its high implementation rates, the programme is hindered by low and decreasing application success rates, due to its significant popularity and insufficient finances. Thus, a great number of high quality projects are without the deserved support. Furthermore, these very limited resources are re-allocated towards a new and ever wider range of initiatives. Given the relevance and efficacy of the programme and the need for increasing its budget, new resources should be provided independently of possible mergers with other programmes.

Creative Europe isn't enough. The EU should allocate 1% of its budget (more than 9 billion EUR) to culture, in order to properly support cultural organizations, practitioners and artists.

1% for Culture Campaign

Culture, as the foundation of European unity and key to future prosperity, needs a proper financial commitment to ensure the sustainability of the European project.

National governments and EU policymakers are currently taking decisions on the post 2020 EU budget that will influence the next phase of support to culture. CAE calls on the European Institutions and Member States to recognise the EU added value of cultural investment and translate it to sufficient support in the next EU budget by.

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At the same time CAE calls the European cultural sector to become loud and visible and support the following demands:

• ensure that 1% of the budget of each EU policy field is allocated to culture;
• double the budget for culture.

A shared European future is only possible with substantial and sustainable funding for culture both across policy fields and in the framework of a specific cultural programme. 

If you want to support the campaign, you can sign the online petition 'Supporting Culture is Supporting Europe'.

> Petition

Agenda for Culture, it's time for revision

Ten years after the adoption of the Agenda for Culture in 2007, a new European reality calls for its urgent revision. There is a growing recognition by Member States and European institutions of the contribution of culture to the progress of the European Union. In times of accelerated economic and social change, culture can play an important role in overcoming common challenges and allowing Europe to stride into the future.

Culture Action Europe calls on the European institutions and Member States to:

• 1. Future-proof the Agenda for Culture by providing a flexible framework taking into consideration the cultural ecosystem as a whole, moving beyond narrow dichotomies such as for-profit and not-for-profit, digital and analogue or heritage and contemporary creation.
• 2. Ensure a balanced approach between priorities, giving equal importance to the social, economic and cultural domains.
• 3. Foster synergies across cultural sectors and policy fields given the multidimensional nature of the challenges ahead, the increasing hybridisation of practices and the blurring of boundaries in favour of cross-sectoral cooperation and exchange.
• 4. Recognise the relevance of the objectives included in the 2007 Agenda for Culture and the emergence of new cross-cutting developments that require urgent and ambitious action. In particular, the new Agenda for Culture should strive to:
• 4.1. Safeguard cultural rights and freedom of artistic expression as principles of EU action in the cultural field and promote cultural participation given its recognised impact on democratic attitudes and values;
• 4.2. Enhance synergies between education and culture in formal and non-formal domains for European citizens and cultural actors alike, including a lifelong learning approach to develop cultural and creative skills and the human-centred competences necessary in the future, especially as a result of the digital shift;
• 4.3. Give a holistic response to the emergence of new cultural diversities by retaining and enhancing intercultural dialogue and mobility of cultural actors and works within Europe and beyond; and pursuing a fresh approach to cohesion policy focused on social innovation and community actions;
• 4.4. Promote the anchoring of culture as an integral part of the European Research and Innovation policy due to its contribution to tackling societal challenges, inform the digital transition, and fostering innovation, growth and jobs;
• 4.5. Advance on the implementation of the ‘Strategy for international cultural relations’ in response to the growing global polarisation, promoting mobility of cultural operators through adequate visa systems and schemes;
• 5. Facilitate access to European cultural programmes for cultural organisations of all sizes, particularly small cultural operators.
• 6. Ensure sustainable and increased financial support for the new Agenda for Culture in the post-2020 MFF in order to guarantee that the EU added value of culture can be realised.
• 7. Foster new approaches to data collection given that a new divide is emerging between the public sector, increasingly poor in data and information, and the information-rich digital operators.

> CAE Reflection paper Agenda for Culture 2018

Photo by Filarmónica Joven de Colombia on Foter.com / CC BY