🔗 Share this article

Nigeria's impressive new West African Art Museum (Mowaa) has ended up in the crosshairs of area political conflicts during the time it was expected to – but was unable – to begin operations to the visitors for the initial occasion.

The Grand Vision

The 15-acre campus is located in the heart of the Edo state capital, capital of the southern state of Edo – and features an historical dig and structures created by celebrated Ghanaian-British architect Sir David Adjaye, best known for the Smithsonian African American Museum that began operations in Washington DC in 2016.

It has been 60 months in the making – and is designed to celebrate both the history and the current era of creativity in the region known for the Benin Bronzes, artworks taken from the city's royal palace by UK forces in the 19th Century.

Readiness and Potential

It is remarkable – and before the planned opening, Mowaa was buzzing with employees committed to show it is a venue that can rival established cultural centers in the Western world.

Within art restorers carefully unwrapped art pieces from secure wrapping, inspecting each artifact and taking detailed documentation before arranging them on exhibition areas and bases.

Experts calibrated climate control systems. In the research lab, staff members adjusted equipment meant to maintain centuries-old objects.

Investment and Economic Plans

The initiative has been the idea of businessman Phillip Ihenacho – presently Mowaa's managing director.

"I aim us to have a major financial effect on communities in the vicinity," he stated to the press, adding that he hoped to make Benin City "a cultural destination."

Mowaa, a not-for-profit national foundation, envisions itself generating in excess of 30,000 direct and indirect jobs and contributing over $80m per year to the regional creative economy through collaborations and activities.

Financial Support and Government Issues

It has needed $25m to achieve this stage – capital collected from various contributors, including the European governments, the London institution and the local administration.

But now the local government has revoked permission from beneath it – terminating the occupancy of the property on which the building was erected.

An government communicator clarified this was because in the initial documents it had identified as Edo Museum of West African Art – and it had since dropped "the state identifier" from its name.

Unrest and Official Response

This statement was preceded by demonstrations on recently, when protesters stormed the campus insisting it be called the Benin Royal Museum.

A boisterous group confronted overseas dignitaries at the facility before the opening – forcing them to be hurried away under official guard.

President Bola Tinubu has even stepped in to try and resolve the tensions, setting up a special task force to do some damage control.

Political Complexities

But why has this become so divisive – and such a public relations crisis?

Much of it stems from local power struggles at a local state level, as it was the ex-administrator Godwin Obaseki – whose term in office finished the previous year – who was a primary advocate of the project.

And it seems the government of the current leader, a strong supporter of the regional monarch, known as the traditional leader, may want greater involvement in the venture. The activists on that day, for instance, were insisting that the facility be positioned under the authority of Oba Ewuare II.

The Cultural Artifacts Debate

This highlights the controversial matter of the cultural artifacts, one of Africa's most renowned artistic heritage.

Because although the institution does ultimately begin operations, these artifacts will be clearly not present.

They are brass, ivory and wooden sculptures that once decorated the king's residence of the historical empire before colonial troops looted them in the late nineteenth century during a punitive expedition.

Nowadays, thousands continue to be scattered across institutions in the West -- featuring the British Museum, German museum and the American museum.

Return Initiatives

Their repatriation has become one of the most debated debates in the international art community. Approximately 150 have currently made their way home – and additional are expected to return.

When plans for the institution in the city were originally proposed in recent years, the key players on Nigeria's art scene hoped it would become their natural home – a state-of-the-art campus to show them off to the international community.

But the issues became confused two years ago after the national authorities stated that the royal leader would be the proper guardian of repatriated artifacts – and the royal household advocated for a museum under the royal family's direct control, opposing the desires of the ex-leader.

Strategic Positioning

This left Mowaa in a challenging circumstance: expressing a specific viewpoint on return while staying tactful on ownership – and emphasising its wider mission, which led to|c