BASA presents its unique artist and business toolkits at high-profile UNESCO event in Paris

Taking place at UNESCO's Paris headquarters on 10 June, BASA was represented by its CEO Michelle Constant.

Constant showcased the Arts Partnership Toolkit and the Arts Sponsorship Management Toolkit during the discussion, which was moderated by South African, Mike van Graan, Executive Director of the African Arts Institute.

The session saw International Fund for Cultural Diversity (IFCD) beneficiaries from Argentina, Guatemala and Senegal as well as BASA, share experiences and discuss the opportunities their projects are opening at the local level, as well as the impact they are achieving in developing countries

Comments Constant, "It was a huge honor to be acknowledged for the projects we do, and to represent South Africa. Kudos go to the BASA team and Michael Goldman of GIBS for facilitating the Toolkits, also to the DAC for their ongoing support of our work."

Launched earlier this year, the BASA Arts Sponsorship Toolkit provides a way for the management team of an arts organisation to review, refresh and enhance their sponsorship practice.

It acts as a complement to the BASA Business Sponsorship Toolkit which has been used by South African businesses since its launch in 2012. The Toolkit gives businesses a way of navigating through a sponsorship cycle and, ultimately, the ability to measure the effectiveness of an arts sponsorship as a strategic part of any business.

Constant was joined by Claudia Billourou, Co-director of Escuela de Artes y Oficios del Teatro Argentino de la Plata, Argentina; Diego Padilla, Joint Director of Instituto de Relaciones Internacionales e Investigaciones para la Paz, Guatemala and Oumar Sall, coordinator of Groupe 30 Afrique, Senegal.

"What was highlighted once again, through these excellent projects, was the enormous and diverse value which the arts offer society, from growing economies to social equity," adds Constant.

The IFCD, the fund established by the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, invests in creativity and supports projects that spark transformational change in developing countries.

The event marked the launch of the "Your 1% Counts for Creativity" fundraising campaign and was followed by the fourth Conference of the Parties of the 2005 Convention (11 - 14 June 2013).