Day: January 12, 2022

During a press conference addressed by Minister for National Heritage, the Arts and Local Government José Herrera and Arts Council Malta (ACM) Director of Funding and Strategy Mary Ann Cauchi, it was announced that the first call for the Programming Support Scheme 2022 is now open. This scheme forms part of the Resilience Funds, which also include the Events Assurance Scheme and the Seat Utilisation Scheme published in December 2021.

“The resilience strand of ACM’s portfolio of schemes is key to providing local artists and creatives the necessary assurance in the development and production of projects during times of uncertainty brought about by the global pandemic,” said Minister Herrera. “Whilst our main aim remains focused on the creation of a sustainable and more resilient sector, as a government we understand the need to provide peace of mind to artists via funding, to continue supporting the sector in the short and medium term,” continued Dr Herrera.

Arts Council Malta Director Mary Ann Cauchi reiterated that the council’s commitment towards the creative and cultural sectors includes providing artists, creatives and cultural practitioners with the necessary tools to implement programmes that reflect the growth of the sectors, which was already happening even before the pandemic. “We must look forward towards the future with the ambition of creating a more vibrant, sustainable and professional programme for the months and years to come”, said Ms. Cauchi.

The first call of the Programme Support Scheme covers programmes taking place between May 2022 and November 2023. This call, which closes on the 23rd of February 2022, is one of three calls spread throughout 2022. Applicants will need to provide a proposed programme of related activities with a common objective, which may include events, productions, performances, exhibitions, festivals, community cultural initiatives, training and development initiatives aligned to a budget forecast.

The Programme Scheme aims to facilitate more financial and strategic flexibility, security, collaborations, innovative audience engagement, skills development and logistical service acquisition, while minimising the risk of unexpected losses that occur due to unexpected restrictions related to public health or related matters. Cultural operators – whether they operate on a small, medium or large scale – would be able to plan ahead in their programming while adapting to the new realities and taking into account the uncertainties in a strategic and financially feasible manner.

Health and safety measures are to be given utmost importance, keeping in mind that these are contingent upon the situation in the respective periods. Therefore, applicants are encouraged to submit their proposed programme of activities whilst keeping in mind the current scenarios.

This scheme will also enable a compensation for seated ticketed events which would have to operate below full seating capacity due to public health restrictions. The capped compensation works around the difference between the projected ticket sales in circumstances without public health restrictions and the projected ticket sales with the current public health restrictions (which may vary over time). Applications which do not opt to include the seat compensation through this scheme may consider submitting a separate application through the Seat Utilisation Scheme.

Moreover, the Resilience Strand includes the Events Assurance Scheme, which is aimed at providing the necessary assurance for cultural and artistic professionals in case of any potential re-introduction of restrictive measures beyond the current ones. The scheme will provide mitigation on measures that can have a devastating impact on the industry and will provide support to cover investments in terms of time and equity in the preparation for the organisation of activities/events.

The Seat Utilisation Scheme and the Events Assurance Scheme are open throughout 2022 with specific deadlines to cover distinctive months as outlined on the Guidelines and Regulations document published by Arts Council Malta.

For more information, one may contact Arts Council Malta on 2334 7230, on weekdays, between 09:00 and 16:00, or send an email on fundinfo@artscouncil.mt or visit artscouncil.mt.

Source: Office of the Prime Minister

U.S. consumer prices jumped 7% in December compared to a year earlier, the highest inflation rate in 40 years, the government’s Labor Department reported Wednesday.

Higher prices coursed throughout the U.S. economy in 2021, with the biggest increases since 1982. The annualized jump in December was up from the 6.8% figure in November and was a half-percentage point gain over the course of a month.

Analysts say robust consumer demand collided with coronavirus-related supply shortages, pushing up prices over the year for big ticket items like cars and furniture, but more importantly for must-buy, everyday purchases like food and gasoline for motorists.

Despite the year-over-year inflation surge, President Joe Biden said the report “shows a meaningful reduction in headline inflation over last month, with gas prices and food prices falling.”

He said it “demonstrates that we are making progress in slowing the rate of price increases. At the same time, this report underscores that we still have more work to do, with price increases still too high and squeezing family budgets.”

The rapidly rising costs for consumers have caught the attention of the White House and policy makers at the country’s central bank, the Federal Reserve, even as they say they expect inflation to remain high throughout 2022.

In November, Biden called for the Federal Trade Commission to investigate “mounting evidence of anti-consumer behavior by oil and gas companies.” The Fed is signaling new efforts to rein in inflation by ending its direct financial support of the economy in March, sooner than originally planned, and to increase its benchmark interest rate that influences borrowing costs for businesses and consumers.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told a congressional committee Tuesday that getting prices down to more stable levels was key to ensure a lasting recovery from the pandemic.

“If inflation does become too persistent, if these high levels of inflation become too entrenched in the economy or people’s thinking, that will lead to much tighter monetary policy from us, and that could lead to a recession and that would be bad for workers,” Powell told lawmakers.

For consumers, inflation is often more of a daily fact of life than other aspects of the American economy that have recovered smartly since the coronavirus pandemic first swept into the U.S. in March 2020.

The U.S. economy added a record-setting 6.4 million jobs last year, the unemployment rate dropped from 6.3% in January to 3.9% in December and rank-and-file workers’ hourly paychecks rose by 5.8%. Government assistance checks sent to all but the wealthiest American households helped many families.

But prices consumers paid rose markedly.

Government statistics showed that gasoline prices paid by motorists at service stations were up 58% last year, while the price of used cars and trucks were up 31% and new vehicles by 11%.

Meat, poultry and fish prices were up 13%, furniture and bedding by nearly 12%. Fast-food and casual dining places raised their prices by nearly 8%.

Source: Voice of America