Creative Industry

Foreign Affairs Ministry Hands Over Two Benin Bronzes to Art & Culture Ministry

Published

11 months ago

November 18, 2025

Joel Ajayi

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has handed over two Benin Bronzes, a bronze relief plaque and a commemorative head, to the Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, marking a significant milestone in Nigeria’s efforts to reclaim its cultural heritage.

In a statement issued on Monday by theSA Media & Publicity Office of the Honourable Minister Federal Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy NNEKA IKEM ANIBEZE, reveals that the artifacts, looted during the 1897 invasion of the Benin Kingdom, were repatriated from the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) Boston. The handover ceremony took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday.

The Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, thanked the Foreign Affairs Minister, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, for facilitating the return of the pieces.

“This is a historic moment for Nigeria, the Ministry, and the good people of the Benin kingdom. We are still having conversations with several others in custody of these artifacts, and soon, the process of returning them all to their rightful owners will begin,” Musawa stated.

Earlier, the Director General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Olugbile Holloway, expressed appreciation to all facilitators, including staff of NCMM, for the long-awaited success.

“Our appreciation also goes to His Royal Highness, Prince Aghatise Erediauwa who led the struggle to recover the pieces. What we are witnessing today is the return of a huge part of Nigeria’s history. As much as this occasion is symbolic to Benin, it is also symbolic to Nigeria’s struggle as far as the restitution of our cultural objects is concerned. We also have objects from Ife, so this event is historic, irrespective of the small gathering,” Holloway stated.

A symbolic handover to the Ministry by the Minister of Foreign Affairs took place in the presence of the three high chiefs who represented the Oba of Benin, His Royal Majesty, Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare II.

The event was attended by management staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, and NCMM.

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Creative Industry

FG Backs MyCityApp Launch of 100-Day Tourism Calendar to Drive $100bn Economic Growth

Published

2 weeks ago

September 15, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The Federal Government has thrown its weight behind the launch of MyCityApp, a Nigerian city discovery and tourism platform designed to aggregate festivals, concerts, cultural events and lifestyle experiences into a single digital calendar.

The platform, which flags off the 100-Day Tourism Calendar, was unveiled on Monday at the Ember2Remember National Stakeholders’ Conference in Victoria Island, Lagos, with the initiative targeting Nigeria’s estimated $100 billion tourism and creative economy opportunity.

In a statement issued on Tuesday in Abuja by the Media and Publicity Adviser to the Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Nneka Ikem Anibeze, the ministry said the conference was aimed at mobilising public and private stakeholders to transform the September-to-December festive period into jobs, investment and economic growth.

Speaking at the unveiling, the Minister, Hannatu Musa Musawa, said millions of visitors travel across Nigeria every year to celebrate, reconnect and experience the country’s diverse culture, stressing that the festive season could be deliberately organised and monetised to strengthen tourism’s contribution to the economy.

“This initiative is about moving beyond the traditional concept of a festive season. It is about deliberately organising, packaging, promoting, and monetising one of the most economically active periods in our national calendar,” Musawa said.

She noted that every visitor generates economic activity across several sectors, including aviation, transportation, hospitality, restaurants, entertainment, retail, technology, artisans and local communities.

The Minister commended MyCityApp Chief Executive Officer, Mrs Ifeoma Chukwu, for her vision and commitment to the initiative.

She urged state governments, event organisers, tourism operators, hospitality businesses and other stakeholders to list their festivals, concerts, exhibitions, food experiences, cultural celebrations, fashion and sporting events on the national calendar.

Musawa said the platform would enable Nigerians, members of the diaspora and international visitors to discover tourism and entertainment experiences across the country from a single, credible source.

Earlier, Chukwu said Nigeria’s rich cultural heritage and creative sector provided enormous opportunities for tourism-driven economic growth.

She cited the contributions of tourism to the economies of countries such as Spain, France and the United States, arguing that Nigeria could equally build a $100 billion tourism economy.

Also present were Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Toke Benson-Awoyinka; Enugu State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Ugochi Madueke; NCAC Director-General, Obi Asika; National Gallery of Art Director-General, Ahmed Sodangi; ARCON Director-General, Dr Olalekan Fadolapo; and MTN Nigeria CEO, Dr Karl Toriola.

MyLagosApp and MyCityApp will serve as the digital engines of the calendar, distributing events through a 360-degree media ecosystem to audiences in Nigeria and the diaspora.

Stakeholders were encouraged to upload their events on MyCityApp to participate in the national tourism calendar urging them to upload events on http://www.MyCityApp.io.

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