Vaccinate to get the creative and cultural sector back on track

While the Covid-19 pandemic has caused disruptions to many sectors throughout the world, few have been as affected as the cultural and creative sectors.

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) sums up the impact of the pandemic on the sector and livelihoods in its 2021 report “Cultural and creative industries in the face of Covid-19: an economic impact outlook,“The cultural and creative industries (CCIs) have been among the first sectors to shut their doors and they will be among the last to reopen. Large parts of the sector depend on human congregation. As a result, venue and site-based activities such as theatre, live music, festivals, cinemas and museums have been hit particularly hard.

“Around the world, the livelihoods of workers in different sectors have been profoundly affected by lockdowns and physical distancing measures. The creative ecosystem, which combines a handful of multinational conglomerates with a multitude of freelance creatives and small and medium-sized enterprises, employs a significant proportion of these workers.”

In SA, the economic impact of the pandemic on the sector has been astounding.  Many cultural and creative treasures have come under financial pressure facing partial or permanent closure, including the Baxter Theatre, the Apartheid Museum and most recently Liliesleaf. 

According to the SA Cultural Observatory, this financial distress amounted to about R53bn in 2020 alone.  This is expected to reduce the country’s GDP (direct and indirect impact) by almost R99.7bn. Amid these realities the country’s continued bleak economic outlook and the unemployment crisis, it is crucial that the sector open up. 

However, though vaccination rates are increasing and the steady decline in infections has signalled the end of the third wave, we must continue to be vigilant and manage the opening up of this sector with caution, including the continued implementation of public health safety protocols.

Knowing what we know about Covid-19, vaccination and non-pharmaceutical interventions, as well as the creative and cultural industries, there may need for them to reimagine themselves going forward.

For instance, it will become imperative that events are hosted in properly ventilated spaces allowing for sufficient social distance between people.  This could mean that we need to look at using more open, outdoors spaces.  We have learnt that this is generally safer and can mitigate super-spreading events. 

However, each venue should be assessed for its merits and compliance with the Covid-19 safety protocols. Even when a venue is quite large, the unrestricted gathering of people without proper ventilation, masking and the required social distance can turn the event into a superspreader.

As other countries are opening up their creative and cultural sectors, global best practice has been for people attending events to either provide proof of being fully vaccinated or a negative Covid-19 rapid test.  SA should adopt these practices as the sector prepares to reopen.

While the mass gathering of people in poorly ventilated spaces has been shown to be a driver of infection during the pandemic, it also has broader implications for public health more generally.  The bigger question therefore is, are there lessons from the pandemic for the reinvention and reimagining of the sector that could create healthier and safer gatherings?  SA has an excellent advantage of good weather and open spaces. Could these be used differently, creating distinct marketing opportunities for cities and communities at the same time?

As we contemplate the more creative and innovative solutions to the recovery of the sector, we continue to urge people to take the opportunity to be vaccinated.  The evidence that vaccines save lives and prevent serious illness is overwhelming.  To date about just under 12-million people in the country are fully vaccinated.  We must take advantage of the slowdown in new rates of infection to get as many more people vaccinated as possible.  There are sufficient vaccines in the country so that everyone who wants to be vaccinated can do so.

• Mendelson is professor of infectious diseases and head of the infectious diseases & HIV medicine division at Groote Schuur Hospital, University of Cape Town. Dr Johnson is health practice partner at Genesis Health and adviser to the Solidarity Fund.