Sunday, January 11, 2009

Commissioning of the Institute for African Culture and International Understanding

DG Matsuura meeting with Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo
(UNESCO archival photo)


UNESCO Director-General Koichiro Matsuura has traveled to Nigeria for the commissioning of the Institute for African Culture and International Understanding (IACIU) in Abeokuta, Ogun State, as well as the Centre for Black Culture and International Understanding in Osogbo, Osun State.

The Institute is a "Category II" Center, supported by the Government of Nigeria. According to the UNESCO documentation proposing the approval of the center:
The Institute aims to study, evaluate, inventorize, exhibit and disseminate all relevant material related to Africa's cultural heritage – both tangible and intangible – and its diasporas. In addition, it will encourage academic and scientific research on black culture and its cultural expressions, creating a global network of specialists on this topic with workshops and seminars aimed at raising awareness not only among Nigerian stakeholders but also among national and local decision-makers. The Nigerian Government wishes to link this Institute to other national bodies devoted to the safeguarding of heritage and black culture from Africa and other parts of the world.
The first such body is the Center for Black Culture and International Understanding. That Center is built around a collection of Nigerian materials, largely drawn from the Yoruba culture, donated by Ulli and Georgina Beier.

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