🔗 Share this article

Nigeria's stunning new West African Art Museum (Mowaa) has ended up in the middle of regional political struggles during the week it was scheduled to – but failed – to begin operations to the public for the initial occasion.

The Grand Vision

The six-hectare campus stands in the center of Benin City, administrative center of the southern area of Edo – and contains an excavation site and facilities planned by renowned Ghanaian-British architect Sir David Adjaye, particularly noted for the Washington African American Museum that was inaugurated in Washington in 2016.

It has been half a decade in the creation – and is envisioned to celebrate both the past and the present of cultural innovation in the region renowned for the historic artworks, cultural objects looted from the royal palace by British troops in the 19th Century.

Preparation and Promise

It is impressive – and prior to the scheduled opening, Mowaa was active with employees determined to demonstrate it is a institution that can rival renowned museums and galleries in the Western world.

Inside art restorers precisely unwrapped art pieces from secure wrapping, checking each artifact and taking detailed notes before arranging them on exhibition areas and bases.

Technicians adjusted climate control systems. In the research lab, staff members set up instruments meant to preserve historical objects.

Funding and Economic Goals

The initiative has been the brainchild of entrepreneur Phillip Ihenacho – currently Mowaa's chief executive.

"I want us to have a substantial financial effect on area populations in this region," he explained to the press, adding that he aspired to make this urban center "an arts hub."

Mowaa, a charitable Nigerian institution, aims at generating more than 30,000 employment opportunities and providing more than $80m each year to the area arts sector through alliances and events.

Funding Sources and Political Challenges

It has needed $25m to reach this point – capital collected from multiple donors, including the international partners, the British Museum and the local administration.

But at present the local government has pulled the rug from beneath it – canceling the utilization of the land on which the museum was built.

An Edo state spokesperson stated this was because in the original paperwork it had identified as EMOWAA – and it had subsequently removed "Edo" from its name.

Unrest and Official Response

This announcement followed rallies on the weekend, when people stormed the complex demanding it be designated the Royal Benin Museum.

A disruptive assembly insulted foreign guests at the museum before the inauguration – requiring them to be quickly removed under police escort.

Head of state Bola Tinubu has even intervened to try and resolve the conflict, setting up a presidential committee to address the controversy.

Governance Issues

But how has this evolved into so politicised – and such a public relations crisis?

A great deal of it comes down to local power struggles at a area administrative level, as it was the ex-administrator Godwin Obaseki – whose term in office concluded recently – who was a key supporter of the initiative.

And it looks like the leadership of the new governor, a key associate of the local traditional ruler, called the traditional leader, may want more of a stake in the initiative. The demonstrators on that day, for case, were calling for that the institution be positioned under the control of the current Oba.

The Benin Bronzes Controversy

This emphasizes the disputed topic of the cultural artifacts, one of the continent's most celebrated cultural treasures.

Because even if the institution does ultimately welcome visitors, these artifacts will be clearly not present.

They are metal, ivory and timber artworks that once embellished the king's residence of the ancient kingdom before colonial troops looted them in the colonial era during a punitive expedition.

Nowadays, thousands stay scattered across museums in Western nations -- featuring the London museum, Berlin's Humboldt Forum and the American museum.

Return Initiatives

Their homecoming has become one of the most debated debates in the global art world. About 150 have currently been returned – and more are scheduled to be repatriated.

When proposals for the facility in the urban center were originally proposed in 2019, the influential figures on the national arts community hoped it would become their ideal location – a modern complex to exhibit them to the global audience.

But the waters were muddied recently after the central administration declared that the traditional ruler would be the proper guardian of any returned bronzes – and the palace pushed for a institution under the king's authority, contrary to the wishes of the ex-leader.

Political Navigation

This left Mowaa in a delicate position: expressing a clear stance on return while remaining diplomatic on guardianship – and highlighting its wider mission, which led to|c