Arts groups can tap two new schemes to improve their skills and ease expenses amid the coronavirus outbreak, which has led to shows being cancelled or postponed.

About $1.6 million will be set aside for the initiatives, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Culture, Community and Youth Baey Yam Keng told Parliament yesterday.

One is a one-time capability development grant to subsidise the cost of local courses.

It is open to both individuals and arts groups, which can enrol their staff in such programmes or organise courses for them. Applications open on March 16.

Those identified as major or seed grant companies by the National Arts Council (NAC) can apply for up to $10,000. Other groups can get up to $3,000; individuals, up to $600.

The other initiative is a subsidy to cushion the financial impact of the outbreak on arts practitioners.

Those running events in national cultural institutions, such as the Esplanade, National Heritage Board museums and Arts House venues, between today and June 30 will get a 30 per cent reduction in their venue rental and associated costs.

"We want cultural performances to continue during this time, as the arts inspire us and lift our spirits, as long as necessary precautions are in place," said Mr Baey, during the debate on his ministry's budget.

"We also want to encourage arts and culture practitioners to take this opportunity to develop their capabilities and better position themselves for the future."

The grant and subsidy schemes are part of the Stabilisation and Support Package announced by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat last month as part of Budget 2020.

Mr Baey suggested that other Budget measures, like a training support scheme for freelancers, could benefit arts practitioners too.

Mr Henry Kwek (Nee Soon GRC) and Nominated MP Terence Ho had asked how the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth would support the arts community during the outbreak.

Mr Kwek proposed more support for capability development.

Mr Ho suggested revising the Cultural Matching Fund to better support small-and medium-sized arts groups. The fund matches, dollar-for-dollar, cash given by private donors to registered arts and heritage charities. Mr Ho suggested raising the ratio to 1:2.

Mr Baey said the ministry will launch a new fund to help smaller arts groups become more sustainable and achieve Institutions of a Public Character status. The Sustain The ARTs Fund, or stART Fund for short, will gather donations from corporations and individuals, that will be matched by the Cultural Matching Fund where eligible.

The NAC plans to grow the stART Fund to $10 million - enough to support nearly 100 groups - between this year and 2022, said Mr Baey.

To be eligible, arts groups must be registered with the Commissioner of Charities, Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority or Registry of Societies, and have a total operating expenditure of less than $1 million a year.

Members of the arts community welcomed the measures, but asked if more could be done.

Nine Years Theatre's co-founder Nelson Chia, 48, noted that its Mandarin play First Fleet - originally scheduled for last month - was postponed to March next year.

The company spent a five-figure sum on compensation for freelancers who worked on the show.

Mr Chia found the schemes encouraging, but said: "What about losses that have already been incurred?... Is there a case for case-by-case support?"

Teater Ekamatra's artistic director Mohd Fared Jainal, 46, said the theatre company plans to apply for the capability development grant and enrol its staff in marketing and technical theatre courses.

"Anything would be of help right now," he said, but added that Mr Ho's suggestion to increase the Cultural Matching Fund's ratio to 1:2, would be even more useful.

"As an ethnic minority theatre company, getting donors is really tough - even without Covid-19, it's already very difficult for us."

Freelance actor and voice-over artist Edward Choy, 40, was heartened by the Government's efforts to help the sector.

He suggested that the Government could launch a special fund to support "uplifting" works in response to the virus, and provide funding for arts practitioners who want to run classes for other artists.

"We don't know what's going to happen in two to three months' time, but right now, there are lots of people who are just sitting around and feeling really worried.

"For the Government to say, 'We'd like to see you continue to improve as an artist and create work' - would be very reaffirming for us."