Artists wish for changes and promotion of values

Writers, editors, singers, journalists and other relevant stakeholders in Moldova’s cultural sector have outlined the ways for the development of culture in Moldova during several roundtables, held as part of the pilot-project “Visions on Cultural Policy for Moldova: from Changes to Viability”. The project was launched by Soros Foundation-Moldova in partnership with the Amsterdam-based European Cultural Foundation (ECF), Info-Prim Neo reports. According to the organisers, the project’s main goals is to promote a participatory approach, to draw up in cooperation with civil society the strategy for cultural development at national and regional level, to contribute to strengthening capacities in experience exchange. Prior to this series of public discussions, a working group consisting of five selected members, experts in different areas of culture and strategic management, outlined the main tasks for the development of the culture system in Moldova: to decentralise and provide equal access to cultural values, to protect and develop the cultural patrimony, to preserve the cultural identity, to reconsider the relation State vs. Culture, to engage the culture system in solving community problems, to diversify financing sources for cultural activities. Several roundtables were attended by representatives from the Ministry of Culture, who emphasised the interest of the ministry in this pilot-project. This way, the issues approached during the roundtables were debated from at least to viewpoints, of the experts, on one hand, and of the central authorities, on the other. The implementation period of the project “Visions on Cultural Policy for Moldova: from Changes to Viability” is December 2006 – December 2007. The next stage of the project will be an international Conference to be held on June 21-22 that will provide an occasion to discuss, summarise and improve the materials collected during the roundtables, so as to produce a document on the visions on cultural policies, which will be the foundation of a subsequent public advocacy.