The Ministry of Culture in brief
The Ministry of Culture is responsible for two policy areas: cultural policy and media policy. It also bears responsibility for sports issues (which are part of the popular movement policy), religious communities, and burial and cremation services. Heading the Ministry is Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth, the Minister for Culture.
In the area of culture and the media, EU cooperation supplements national efforts, and apart from the TV Directive, the EU is not entitled to impose binding legislation. Cooperation is dominated by the Culture 2000 Framework Programme (for cooperation projects in the fields of fine art and cultural heritage) and the MEDIA Programme (for greater exchange of films in the EU). Both programmes ran until the end of 2006 and are being replaced in 2007 by new programmes, the Culture Programme and MEDIA 2007, which will run until 2013.
International cooperation in the field of culture and media takes place in a number of international organisations and networks: the EU, the Nordic Council of Ministers, UNESCO, the Council of Europe, the Council of the Baltic Sea States, the Barents Council, the Arctic Council, the Asia-Europe Dialogue cooperation, etc.
Counsellors for Cultural Affairs
The overall task of Swedens's Counsellors for Cultural Affairs posted abroad is to promote the role of culture in contacts with other countries and to encourage cultural dialogue. Cultural Affairs Counsellors are currently stationed at Sweden's embassies in Berlin, London, Moscow, Tokyo, Vilnius and Washington, and at the Permanent Representation of Sweden to the European Union in Brussels. There is also a combined post of Head of the Swedish Cultural Centre in Paris and Counsellor for Cultural Affairs at the Embassy in Paris.
