Major Budget Cuts to Culture | Sign the Petition
23 September 2026 - 9:13 pm – AppealReports have appeared in the press about a possible 10% cut to culture. The Flemish Government has not yet taken a decision on this matter, but negotiations are in full swing.
With barely 0.72% of the entire Flemish budget, the Flemish government today makes an enormous amount possible: internationally renowned institutions such as AB, Brussels Philharmonic, Concertgebouw Brugge and Rosas; a unified library system that allows every Fleming, even in the remotest corners of the country, to borrow any book they want; food and drink for our brass bands; wings abroad for creations by high-flyers such as Otobong Nkanga, Alain Platel and Miet Warlop; care and protection for Flemish masterpieces by Rubens, van Ostaijen and Elsschot; thousands of sparkling school performances for children and young people all over the country… and all this with due attention to safety, accessibility, democratic prices and the needs of every Fleming.
That is why cutting culture means cutting each and every one of us.
The social added value of culture is tangible far beyond the theatre: social cohesion, artistic quality, mental wellbeing, international excellence, citizenship, lifelong learning, imagination, care for the future of our heritage… Both scientists and citizens recognise and value the impact of the cultural sector.
The OECD attributes both direct and indirect economic and social benefits to the creative and cultural sectors (OECD report 2023). The researchers of the Vlaamse Kenniscentrum Cultuuronderzoek (Flemish Culture Research Knowledge Centre) bring together fine-grained and concrete evidence for the social, economic, health and cognitive effects of culture. Two out of three Flemings believe that art contributes to social connection; 46% consider it crucial for a healthy society. Even those who participate little or not at all consider culture socially important (Blik in haar ogen research).
Our country counts 2 million active amateur artists, and that number keeps rising. Activities of socio-cultural organisations attract 10 million unique visitors each year. Our museums welcome 5.2 million visitors annually. 81% of Flemings visit a monument or heritage site each year, and 89% attend a concert or performance.
Against this background, the sector took note of the possible 10% cut to culture subsidies announced in the press. It would be yet another cut in a long series. In 2004, the culture budget amounted to 1.99% of the total Flemish budget. It declined steadily to 0.72%. Across the various rounds of cuts, culture has proportionally been one of the policy domains that has contributed the most. Last year too, the Flemish Government faced a major savings exercise.
The cultural sector ultimately contributed 13.5% – or 23 million euros – of the total amount to be saved. A disproportionate figure. Moreover, years of not indexing subsidies, or indexing them incompletely, combined with inflation, had already caused the financial resilience of the cultural sector to wither.
Read the press release of De Federatie, Overleg Kunstenorganisaties (oKo) and Overleg Cultureel Erfgoedorganisaties (OCE) (Dutch).
This article was reprinted from NICC. Read the original article here (Dutch).
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