…creatives eye €6 000 funding opportunity ,approximately( E112 700)
…two Eswatini projects to explore Swazi heritage…
…two Eswatini projects to explore…
…applications close on 5 October…
BY NELIWE NGUBANE
LOBAMBA – For 75 EmaSwati creatives, turning an artistic idea into a fundable project could now be one step closer after they were equipped with practical grant-writing skills ahead of a funding opportunity that could see successful applicants receive €6 000 each.
The youth, artists, cultural practitioners, creative entrepreneurs and representatives of youth organisations were trained during a one-day Proposal Writing and Application Workshop held at King Sobhuza II Park on Wednesday, 16 September 2026.
The workshop was organised to strengthen the ability of EmaSwati creatives to access local and international funding by equipping them with practical skills to identify funding opportunities, develop competitive proposals and submit applications.
Participants were taken through funding landscapes, grant-writing fundamentals and proposal development before applying the skills to an active funding opportunity.
The afternoon session focused on the Africa-Europe Partnerships for Culture: Southern Africa (AEPC Southern Africa) Grants for Creative and Artistic Practitioners call, giving participants an opportunity to work on applications for a programme directly targeting creative and artistic practitioners in the region.
Funded by the European Union and implemented by the Goethe-Institut, the AEPC Southern Africa initiative covers Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Under its second funding round, at least 99 creative and artistic practitioners will be selected through 11 Heritage Narrative Clusters. Each successful practitioner will receive a €6 000 grant, approximately E112 700 at current exchange rates.
The six-month programme will bring artists from different countries and disciplines together to collaborate on new narratives around cultural heritage.
Eswatini will host two of the Heritage Narrative Clusters, creating further opportunities for local creatives to participate in regional cultural collaborations.
One project is being led by Babukisi Foundation, bringing together nine interdisciplinary artists who will reinterpret siSwati cultural heritage through animation, documentary film and visual arts.
Babukisi Foundation Executive Director Thobejane Magagula said the project would work with cultural custodians, elders, researchers and creatives to produce animated stories around Swazi ceremonies, traditions and values.
The project will also produce a documentary exploring everyday experiences, knowledge systems and cultural practices that shape Swati identity, alongside a fine-art exhibition featuring 12 paintings and installation pieces inspired by the 12 siSwati month names and their links to environmental knowledge, seasonal cycles and community life.
The second Eswatini-based project, Folklore Futures, will bring together nine artists working across photography, performance, music and related disciplines to explore contemporary expressions of Swazi life, culture and identity.
Together, the two projects demonstrate how creative practice can be used to preserve, reinterpret and present Eswatini’s cultural heritage to contemporary audiences.
The workshop also provided a practical response to one of the challenges faced by creatives,having ideas and talent but lacking the skills needed to turn those ideas into competitive funding proposals.
For Lot Kafesu, Project Team Manager for the Southern African Component of AEPC at Goethe-Institut South Africa, the initiative connects capacity building with concrete opportunities for artists and creative practitioners.
Kafesu thanked the European Union for funding the project, while also acknowledging the Eswatini National Trust Commission and Bonisile Ndlangamandla for providing the venue.
He further thanked the Eswatini National Trust Commission and Babukisi Foundation for partnering with the Goethe-Institut to equip EmaSwati with grant proposal writing skills and promote the open call among artists and creative practitioners.
The second funding round follows the selection of Eswatini animator Mfanelo Masuku during the first round of the AEPC programme.
Masuku, a self-taught animator and creative entrepreneur, is the founder of Siyakhula Kids’ Habits and has developed work spanning animation, television and children’s content. He was also selected for the Talents Durban programme at Durban FilmMart 2025 with his animation project Sisonkhe Kids Habits.
His selection provides an example of the opportunities available to EmaSwati creatives through regional and international cultural programmes.
The current AEPC Southern Africa call is open to eligible creative and artistic practitioners from Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Applicants can apply to up to three Heritage Narrative Clusters, although each practitioner can only be selected for one.
Successful applicants will participate in a narrative retreat, joint working sessions and online collaboration over six months before presenting the resulting work publicly.
The application deadline is Monday, 5 October 2026.
For the 75 EmaSwati who attended the Lobamba workshop, the opportunity now extends beyond learning how to write a proposal. It offers a chance to put those skills into practice and potentially turn creative ideas rooted in culture, identity and heritage into funded projects.
With the AEPC Southern Africa programme aimed at strengthening cultural cooperation between Southern Africa and Europe while building the capacity of artists and creative practitioners, the organisers are encouraging eligible EmaSwati creatives to use the opportunity and submit their applications before the deadline.
#EPN #Eswatini #CreativeIndustry #CreativeEconomy #EmaSwati #ArtsAndCulture #GrantWriting #CreativeGrants #AEPCSouthernAfrica #GoetheInstitut #EuropeanUnion #EswatiniCreatives #CulturalHeritage #AfricanCreatives #YouthInArts #CreativeOpportunities
