#Basa25 Awards entries open

According to Basa chairperson, Zingisa Motloba, “Each year, the Basa team delivers an exceptional Awards experience for corporate members and creative industry partners. Even though the limitations imposed on us by Covid, the team excelled in its production quality and content. I anticipate this 25th Awards experience will be no exception.”

2022 marks Business and Arts South Africa and the Basa Awards, partnered by Hollard, celebrating 25 years. The Awards celebrate ingenuity, adaptability, and mutually created value aligned to Basa’s core mandate of cementing and celebrating partnerships that champion the arts and business. The call is now open to projects that have been created through partnerships between artists and business that define these values of collaboration and intersection.

On a personal note, Motloba adds that she is thrilled to be on this journey with Basa as the organisation celebrates this milestone: “We look towards the next 25 years of forging lasting and impactful collaborations between commercial businesses and the creative sector. It is a time for renewal and regeneration for all of us, as we emerge from the devastation of the past two years. We are proud of our long-standing relationship with Hollard and honoured to be partnering with Hollard once again. We are also delighted to be welcoming the IDC into the fold as a new collaboration partner in this space.”

Chief marketing officer of Hollard, Heidi Brauer, is excited about partnering with Basa for the 9th consecutive year: “While we’re all relieved about putting the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic behind us, the set of challenges we face, as South Africans and as the world, remains intimidating. The arts have always been good at spotlighting these challenges and lighting the way to a better future, and so we are proud to once again partner with Basa in bringing the Basa Awards to life. In celebrating beautiful partnerships between artists, art organisations, and commercial businesses, we’re enabling those lights to burn as brightly as possible”.

“Our partnership with Basa dovetails with our support for the arts broadly. Their credible track record and innovative programmes complement the work that we have been doing in the past 10 years with emerging artists,” comments Tshepo Ramodibe, head of Corporate Affairs at the IDC. “Basa has committed to ensuring relevant, sustainable, and innovative programmes that provide and support knowledge transfer, skills development, and training in the cultural and creative sectors.”

Projects that harness all creative mediums are eligible for entry; including music, visual arts, dance, theatre, physical performance, architecture, fashion and design, as well as any other form of arts, culture and creativity. Where sponsorship of a project, event or organisation has been shared, each of the sponsoring companies may enter. There are eight categories open for entry into the Basa Awards, which are adjudicated by the awards judging panel and audited by Middel and Partners as follows:

Community Development Award:

Recognising NPO/NGO/CBO/PBO support for arts and culture projects enhancing their communities, whether through education, skills development, contributing to livelihoods or employment, tourism, or other growth opportunities at a grass-roots level.

Corporate Social Investment Award:

Acknowledging vital support for arts and culture projects enhancing their communities, from medium to large businesses (i.e., with more than 50 full-time employees and over R40 million annual turnover) as part of their wider CSI/CSR strategy.

Beyond Borders Partnership Award:

Awarded to a partnership that builds brand reputation and audience for both partners across borders, through a project showcasing South Africa to the rest of the continent and/or overseas, or bringing international or intercontinental arts projects to South Africa.

First-time Sponsor Award:

Awarded to a sponsor supporting the arts for the first time, regardless of size, budget, whether it is through CSI, marketing, HR, B-BBEE or other.

Innovation Award:

Celebrating the most innovative, cutting edge and progressive partnership that served all partners’ purposes effectively. These breakthrough projects and partnerships should demonstrate great creativity, originality, reinvention, new methodologies, or technological/digital innovation.

Long-term Partnership Award:

Recognising outstanding initiative and commitment to the arts over a longer-term period (at least three years) as an integral part of the sponsor’s strategy. The value to the arts project, the broader community, and the sponsor, must be apparent.

Sponsorship In-kind Award:

Acknowledging a sponsor giving quantifiable and impactful non-monetary support to the arts. This may be through the in-kind provision of equipment, materials, media or PR support, space, transportation or travel, or any other products or services, as opposed to monetary sponsorship.

SMME Award:

Awarded for vital support given to the arts by a micro, small or medium enterprise with up to 250 hundred full-time employees and an annual turnover of no more than R100 million.

In addition, one or more Special Awards may be presented at the discretion of the Basa Board of Directors in recognition of remarkable contributions by either an individual, business or organisation to the sustainability of South Africa’s arts.

The deadline for entries is 6 June 2022. For further information about categories, eligibility, judging criteria, and entry guidelines, visit Basa’s website https://awards.basa.co.za/.

Interested applicants can also contact the Awards’ support team at az.oc.asab@sdrawa or call 011 447 2295 /2182 / 2743 during business hours.