In light of the dilapidating impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on individuals employed through the entertainment, culture and creative industries, Minister of Culture, Entertainment, Gender and Sports, Olivia Grange says the Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke has approved a special support package in the sum of $50 million to provide relief to the sector’s most vulnerable.

According to Grange, the relief package was to have been distributed to members of the sector in 2020 but was unfortunately delayed due to technical issues with the electronic portal.

As a result, the relief funds, which at its initial value was estimated at $40 million, has now accrued by an additional $10 million, making the total amount available to the sector’s stakeholders $50 million.

While noting that she was still in negotiations with the finance minister about increasing the available funding, Grange stated that the final phase of “developing an app that will allow more members of the entertainment,
culture and creative industries to register to the e-Registry and apply for grants” is now under way.

Grange made the announcement while making her contribution to the 2021-2022 Sectoral Debate in Parliament on Tuesday (June 8), where she highlighted that as representatives of the people, “our people must not only survive…(but) they must (also) thrive and prosper!”.