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Regional Australia has a rich and diverse cultural landscape that we need to encourage and celebrate.

Rural communities value the arts and their local artists as vital contributors to the quality of life in country towns - they enjoy the arts as a social experience across generations and across artforms.

To support the future growth and development of regional arts throughout the country, the Commonwealth Government has expanded the Regional Arts Fund.

This Fund recognises the particular needs of artists and communities in regional, rural and remote Australia and is instrumental in fulfilling the Government's vision of providing more arts opportunities outside our capital cities.

Over the last three years, the Fund has been a catalyst for more than 1 000 major art projects across Australia. In the Northern Territory, for example, more than 900 artists have been involved in 100 projects over a 12-month period, reaching audiences in excess of 17 500 in regional and remote areas.

We want to build on these successes and to that end, the Commonwealth Government delivered a further $5 million over two years in the 1999-2000 budget.

The Fund is delivered through a unique partnership between the Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments and the Australia Council.

And over the coming two years the Fund will be given an even greater emphasis on supporting smaller regional and remote communities to develop their local art.

Every Australian, irrespective of their postcode, whether they drive a tractor or a car, whether they live near a theatre or a silo, is entitled to have access to the arts - the Regional Arts Fund will help to make this happen.

We are also making our artistic voices heard overseas and the Australia Council recently announced their international program for the next three years.

This package worth more than $10 million, will help our Australian artists capture new international audiences.

For example, the package will help Australian artists to participate in the Venice Biennale. It will also help performers to showcase their work to festival directors and venue programmers from around Australia as well as a wide range of other countries through the Performing Arts Market.

Our artists are building a formidable reputation on the international arts circuit, and at the same time we are attracting more and more international visitors to cultural events in Australia.

So whether we are here at home or overseas we have a vast range of stimulating artistic experiences waiting for us - let's get out and enjoy them.

Peter McGauran
Minister for the Arts
and the Centenary of Federation

• Document ID: 11411 |
• Last modified: 5 February 2008, 6:02pm