The purpose of the study is to assess whether the Ministry of Culture has organised grant administration at the Arts Foundation in a way that supports the grant recipients' performance against the objectives set, in compliance with the regulations and principles governing effective grant administration. The report answers the following questions:
- Have the Arts Foundation and the Agency for Culture and Palaces established an effective grant-awarding process?
- Have the Arts Foundation and the Agency for Culture and Palaces established an appropriate process for grants monitoring?
It is Rigsrevisionen's assessment that the Ministry of Culture has not organised grant administration at the Arts Foundation to the extent required to support the grant recipients' performance against the objectives set. In a number of cases, the award criteria applied by the Arts Foundation are not sufficiently clear and in most cases, the foundation fails to document why some applicants are awarded grants while others are unsuccessful in their applications. Thus, the foundation's award process is not sufficiently transparent, which may lead to speculation about the extent to which the grant recipients meet the eligibility criteria. The Agency for Culture and Palaces has defined a clear framework for the monitoring of grants, but has failed to follow its own guidelines in approx. 16% of the cases. The agency is therefore unable to provide documentation that the grant recipients have used their grant in compliance with its purpose and met the objectives set.
Rigsrevisionen initiated the study in December upon a request from the Danish Public Accounts Committee.
Read the introduction and conclusion (PDF)