Cape Town - With around 5000 visitors a month, the District Six Museum has made a turnaround since the dire impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, with its calendar now fully booked until the end of 2024.
Three years ago, the museum suffered the effects of the closure of cultural centres, as it struggled to finance its monthly operational costs of R383 000.
Museum acting director Chrischené Julius, this week shared the good news that since 2021, they saw a slow uptake of visitors, and in mid-2023, reached pre-Covid numbers of between 4000 - 5000 visitors a month.
“We have seen a marked increase in the numbers of school and university groups who visit the museum for customised programmes.
“The reintegration of the ex-Fugard spaces into the museum’s Homecoming Centre also means that we have seen a marked increase in the use of our spaces for venue hire for theatre productions, conferences and corporate events.
“All of these strands mean that the museum is recovering. We are focused on developing sustainable income streams, and while we are not yet out of the woods, our doors remain open and our calendars are booked up until the end of 2024.
“We could not have done this without support from the local arts community, international donors and Capetonians themselves,” Julius said.
The museum has also managed to retain its 15 staff member complement.
The provincial Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport said it supported 19 museums in the 2020/21 financial year, with the District Six Museum receiving a once-off operational support of just over R300000.
According to its 2020/21 annual report, the list of museums that received support included the Darling Museum, South African Perfume Museum and the South African Jewish Museum.
Julius said their biggest challenge now was ensuring that they maintained momentum and continued to grow.
“In 2021 we had a period when we saw at most 10 visitors a week, but as noted, we have thankfully reached our pre-Covid numbers.
“We are aware that we are part of the tourism ecosystem in the city and as numbers have increased for Cape Town tourism - we have felt the benefit as well.”