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The Netherlands’ international cultural policy contributes to the quality and international visibility of the Dutch cultural sector. At the same time, the policy furthers the objectives of Dutch foreign policy, and is used for cultural diplomacy. It is a joint policy of the Ministries of Education, Culture and Science, Foreign Affairs, and Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation. The government maintains an infrastructure of institutions that stimulate and facilitate exchange, presentation and cooperation, such as embassies, funds and supporting institutions. Within this infrastructure, DutchCulture functions as a centre for international cooperation and has a coordinating, advisory and informative role. The Dutch... read more →

This section contains information about public actors and cultural diplomacy in the Netherlands (1.4.1), European/ international actors and programmes (1.4.2) and NGO's and direct professional cooperation (1.4.3).

In accordance with the Cultural Policy Act (1993), the Dutch government guarantees a financial contribution to a wide and varied range of cultural institutions and programmes. The cultural institutions directly funded by the state government, collectively form the so-called national basic infrastructure (BIS). Traditionally, the composition of the BIS does not alter very much from the one policy period to another. However, some changes did recently occur that are closely linked to ideas that concern the functioning of arts and culture. In the aftermath of the financial crisis, governmental budget cuts and rapid shifts in political views regarding subsidised art... read more →

Table 1: Cultural institutions, by sector and domain (oftentimes no clear distinction between the amount of public and private institutions could be made, so the number is given in the sector that is prevalent). Domain Cultural institutions (subdomains) Public sector Private sector     Number (year) Trend last 5 years (In %) Number (year) Trend last 5 years (In %) Cultural heritage (1) Cultural heritage sites (recognised) (1*) 454 (2012) 482 (2017) +6,2%       Archaeological sites 1433 (2012) 1457 (2017) +1,7%     Museums (2) Museum institutions 799 (2013) 697 (2017) (2*)     Archives (3) Archive institutions... read more →

In accordance with the Cultural Policy Act (1993), the Dutch government guarantees a financial contribution to a selection of cultural institutions and six public funds (see chapter 1.1). These cultural institutions form the so-called national basic infrastructure (BIS) and can be seen as the organisations that ensure the supply and development of high quality cultural output. Especially the museums in the BIS are often former state owned museums that were privatized in the last decades of the 20th century in possession of state collection and therefore sure of their position in the BIS. Since the implementation of the Heritage Act... read more →

The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science depends on cooperation with other ministries. Consultations with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economic Affairs must be undertaken constantly in order to safeguard the interests of arts and culture. In some cases, committees for interdepartmental cooperation are installed – the duration of their existence may vary. Some examples of inter-ministerial or intergovernmental cooperation are: Several ministries work together on ‘top sector’ policy, which was implemented nationwide in 2011. The creative industries are (next to agriculture & food, chemicals industry, energy, high tech industries, life sciences and health, horticulture, logistics and... read more →

Apart from friends associations, citizens are not yet organised as advocacy groups for the arts and culture. Leading friends associations, however, try to influence the political arena on single issues. The Rembrandt Association, for instance, counts 12 000 members who support the acquisition of new pieces of art to enrich museum collections, and who at the same time act as defenders of the Dutch public collection of sculpture, paintings and applied arts. Many NGOs are active in the cultural sector. Next to private art funds and private lottery organisations, larger banks like ABN AMRO and Rabobank purchase art on a... read more →

Within the general (non-legal) framework for intergovernmental relations with respect to culture, the municipalities have the responsibility for accommodations for performing arts and the financial management of municipal collections. On a practical level, they are responsible for the provision of education in the arts and the support of amateur arts, i.e.: Accommodating performing arts institutions, and local exponents such as theatre groups.Providing financial support to municipal museums, libraries, archives and music schools.Maintaining various venues and scheduling performances.      (See also: chapters 5 and 7.) As is the case at the provincial level, the basis of the municipal cultural policies is outlined... read more →

In the Netherlands, provinces as well as municipalities are responsible for the implementation of their own cultural policies. The central government is responsible for the financial and the legislative framework, while the provinces take responsibility for regional distribution and the maintenance of institutions beyond municipal borders. They are also responsible for the accessibility of arts education facilities in the provincial regions. Because they oversee the cultural interactions between their level and the municipalities, they view themselves as the ‘broker’ in between (as summarised by the Association of Provinces of the Netherlands (IPO) in their 2005 pamphlet Choices in Cultural Policy).... read more →

This section contains an overview of cultural institutions in the Netherlands (1.3.1), data on selected public and private cultural institutions (1.3.2) and trends and strategies considering public cultural institutions (1.3.3).