Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, on Monday, December 19, 2022, led delegates of the German government to inspect proposed site of Edo Museum of West African Arts (EMOWAA).

Obaseki, while conducting the German Minister of State for Culture and the Media (BKM), Claudia Roth, on a guided tour of the project site in Benin City, said the museum would attract tourists who want to have an experience of the history and rich cultural heritage of Edo people.

Expressing the state’s appreciation of German government’s declaration of interest to return all looted artefacts in its custody, assured that Edo government would continue to support the realisation of EMOWAA project.

Obaseki said, “we are glad that we have been able to serve as a catalyst to make this happen. A few years before I came into office, the discussion was on, but we realised it was not going to go anywhere until the Edo State government stepped in and it was the intervention of the state that facilitated the return of these works and the increased conversations about their return..

“The conversation about restitution has been going on for almost two years. It is part of our dealing to first return these artefacts to where they belong, but more importantly, whether they are all returned or not, what is most important is the ownership, that these work don’t belong to the people who are currently holding them, but to Edo people and as part of Nigeria, they should come back to Nigeria.”

Noting that the Germans were the first to accept the call for a return of looted artefacts, Obaseki commended the German government for its continued partnership with state. He said that the EMOWAA project, on completion, would serve as a facility to bridge the gap in the history and knowledge of the Edo people.

“This will also serve as a stimulus. Edo people are still very creative and the blood that flows in them is the same blood that flowed in the people who made these world-class pieces 500 years ago. Many of them are expressing themselves in different art forms and media but there is no infrastructure to support them. So, a facility like this will be that infrastructure that will be second to none in the continent to support our budding artists, whether in the traditional arts, music or entertainment. So, it’s about reenacting that creative cultural instinct that is in our DNA.”

Commending the German Government for their support, the governor noted, “they are partially contributing to fund the EMOWAA project. EMOWAA, a charitable trust, is raising funds internationally and openly to help us preserve our heritage; it is not money making venture. Nobody is making money from it, rather people are going out, spending their energy, resources and connections to try and put Edo before the world and make Edo attractive for people who globally are concerned with preservation of heritage.”