In recent years, the arts have seen significant changes in the institutional framework governing them and the way in which resources have been allocated. However, there has not been a major increase in the funding available and the future looks set to record a decrease.

Therefore, the proposed national lottery will probably be the single most important source of major funding for the arts in the next 10 years.

South Africa's three national arts and culture funding agencies - the Arts and Culture Trust of the President (ACT), Business and Arts South Africa (BASA) and the National Arts Council (NAC) - have formed a joint initiative to campaign for an equitable slice of funds to be allocated to the arts.

The initiative aims to ensure that arts and culture is allocated an amount from the lottery at least equal to that of the welfare and sport sector.