Cultural activities worth SEK 5 billion
25 September 2020 14:00:00 | The Church of Sweden The cultural activities of the Church of Sweden within various areas are estimated to be worth a total of SEK 5 billion every year. This figure is revealed in a new report presented during the current Göteborg Book Fair.

The Church of Sweden runs cultural activities in many arenas and in most genres. This work involves a large number of people, both professionals and participants in the wide range of activities.
The Church of Sweden also manages and provides access to the country’s largest cohesive collection of cultural heritage in the form of its church buildings and their contents.
Can this work be valued in socio-economic terms? This is the question that the Church of Sweden commissioned analysis company Ramboll to investigate.
The result is presented in the report titled Svenska kyrkans samhällsekonomiska bidrag till kultur och kulturarv (The socio-economic contribution of the Church of Sweden to culture and cultural heritage).The report was released today in conjunction with a seminar during the current Göteborg Book Fair. Archbishop Antje Jackelén and Amanda Lind, Minister for Culture and Democracy, with responsibility for sport, participated in the seminar.
According to the calculations presented in the report, the total value of the cultural activities of the Church of Sweden amounts to SEK 2.3 billion per year. This sum can be compared to the turnover of the national chain of cinemas, Filmstaden, which reached SEK 1.7 billion last year, or the government support to sport, which totalled over SEK 2.1 billion in 2018.
In addition, there are economic spillover effects amounting to a further SEK 2.7 billion. The spillover effects comprise a higher demand for products and services in other sectors and correspond to more than 6,300 jobs.
This is the first time that such an extensive survey of the Church of Sweden’s cultural activities has been carried out. One underlying factor is that the cultural activities are mostly financed through membership fees. There is therefore a direct link between the number of members in the Church of Sweden and its contribution to Swedish cultural life. With shrinking membership numbers, there is a risk that the Church of Sweden will no longer be able to offer the same range of activities in future.
“The value of culture is naturally much higher than the measurable value in monetary terms. But the report now gives us valuable knowledge about the Church of Sweden’s cultural initiatives in many areas. It confirms that the Church is one of Sweden’s largest cultural actors – in rural areas it sometimes even underpins cultural life. Additionally, it is clear that this is not something that society can take for granted, “says Archbishop Antje Jackelén.
About the report
The Church of Sweden commissioned analysis company Ramboll to draw up the report Svenska kyrkans samhällsekonomiska bidrag till kultur och kulturarv (The socio-economic contribution of the Church of Sweden to culture and cultural heritage).
“Through the study we show that the cultural initiatives of the Church of Sweden are central to culture and cultural life in Sweden. The study also shows the considerable societal value created by civil society actors such as the Church of Sweden, even though not everything can be valued in money,” says Gideon Watchefo, economist and the analyst responsible at Ramboll.
The authors of the report have used tools such as statistics on visits to and participation in the Church’s activities, interviews with experts, case studies and calenders of the parishes’ activities.
The report also highlights factors such as overheads in conjunction with participation in the Göteborg Book Fair and the Göteborg Film Festival, as well as grants, remuneration, the value of training and various products and services. Staff costs have also been included in the calculations.
As there are several methodological challenges in valuing culture in economic terms, the authors have opted throughout to be restrictive and underestimate rather than overestimate the total contribution of the Church of Sweden’s cultural activities to the national economy.
The report Svenska kyrkans samhällsekonomiska bidrag till kultur och kulturarv (The socio-economic contribution of the Church of Sweden to culture and cultural heritage) and a short summary of the report are available via the links included in this press release.
This message has been sent from the press release service Via TT – press release. I do not want to receive press releases from this sender in the future.
Keywords
Contacts
Press secretary on duty
Tel:+46 18 16 94 75Martin LarssonPressekreterare
Presskontakt för teologi, forskning, ekumenik, kultur, kulturarvsfrågor, Svenska kyrkans arbetsgivarorganisation.
Images

Documents
About Svenska kyrkan
The Church of Sweden
The Central Church Office
SE-751 70 Uppsala, SWEDEN
Subscribe to releases from Svenska kyrkan
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Svenska kyrkan by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Svenska kyrkan
Humanitärt stöd till drabbade i Tigray, Etiopien19.1.2021 13:32:48 CET | Pressmeddelande
Act Svenska kyrkan ger stöd till 11 000 människor i Tigrayregionen i Etiopien med anledning av konflikten mellan regeringsstyrkor och Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). De humanitära insatserna handlar bland annat om tryggt boende, renovering av vattenpumpar och kontantstöd för att säkerställa näringsrik mat. Insatserna motsvarar fem miljoner kronor som Sida har beviljat.
Sex filmer nominerade till Svenska kyrkans filmpris12.1.2021 13:50:00 CET | Pressmeddelande
29 januari invigs den 44:e upplagan av Göteborg Film Festival, som i år blir digital. Sex filmer är nominerade till Svenska kyrkans filmpris Angelos. Svenska kyrkan är också medarrangör till ett poddsamtal mellan ärkebiskop Antje Jackelén och filosofiprofessor Åsa Wikforss om erfarenheterna av det senaste årets pandemi.
Särskild klockringning i landets domkyrkor28.12.2020 08:00:00 CET | Pressmeddelande
Med anledning av pandemin blir det en särskild klockringning i landets domkyrkor på nyårsafton. Klockorna ringer för att hedra dem som dött under detta pandemiår och för att samla tankar och känslor kring det som förenar oss.
Julens budskap når ut på många vägar21.12.2020 07:00:00 CET | Pressmeddelande
I år blir det en annorlunda jul. Svenska kyrkan ställer om verksamheten utifrån de förutsättningar och restriktioner som gäller och genomför de gudstjänster, konserter och verksamheter som är möjliga. Samtidigt ökar vi antalet digitala sändningar. Svenska kyrkans digitala julkonserter har redan en halv miljon visningar och på Svenska kyrkans bönewebb, med möjlighet till digital ljuständning, har besöken ökat stort. Jourhavande präst håller öppet dygnet runt under jul- och nyårshelgerna.
Dygnet runt-öppet hos Jourhavande präst under jul/nyår16.12.2020 12:20:46 CET | Pressmeddelande
I år blir julen och helgledigheterna annorlunda. För många kan den här perioden bli smärtsam, kanske på grund av ofrivillig ensamhet, sjukdom och annat som gör att årets jul- och nyårsfirande inte blir som det brukar. Därför rustar nu Jourhavande präst för extraöppet under storhelgerna i pandemitid.
”Vi byter sorg mot hopp” – Människorättsförsvarare prisas i Colombia3.12.2020 12:00:29 CET | Pressmeddelande
För nionde året i rad prisas människorättskämpar i Colombia. Med livet som insats står de upp för mänskliga rättigheter. Att uppmärksamma deras arbete är viktigt för freden i landet – inte minst med tanke på att hot och våld mot människorättsförsvarare i Colombia ökat under pandemin. Priset delas ut av Diakonia och Act Svenska kyrkan.
Fokus för julinsamlingen: bryt skadliga traditioner27.11.2020 09:30:22 CET | Pressmeddelande
På söndag startar Act Svenska kyrkans julinsamling. I fokus står flickors rätt till ett värdigt liv och vikten av att bryta skadliga traditioner som tvångsäktenskap och könsstympning. En ny gåvoshop lanseras i samband med julinsamlingen där man kan köpa julklappar och samtidigt stötta dem som drabbas hårdast av pandemin.
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom