According to David Greene, Charge d’Affaires of the US embassy in Nigeria, has since October 2022, returned 63 stolen Benin bronzes to Nigeria.
Greene gave a speech at an Abuja gathering on Thursday.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the protection of Sukur’s cultural heritage in Adamawa state was also signed by the US envoy with Nigeria.
“The most recent grant will help the International Council on Monuments and Sites-Nigeria and its local partners preserve Sukur cultural heritage through documentation, preservation of the Sakun language, and infrastructure enhancements,” said Greene.
Following that, we stepped up our coordinated efforts to identify, intercept, and repatriate looted, or other displaced cultural property and related works.
“These efforts paved the way for the official transfer in October 2022 of 22 Benin bronzes back to Nigeria.
“I am pleased to report that since 2022, the number has grown, and now a total of 63 Benin bronzes have been successfully repatriated to Nigeria.”
Hannatu Musawa minister of arts, culture, and creative economy, said insurgency and climate change have endangered the Sukur cultural landscape.
“The project aims at undertaking a two-year conservation and preservation work in the Sukur cultural landscape, a UNESCO world heritage site, which is regarded as a place of outstanding universal values,” Musawa said.
“The work also involves the conservation of the tangible and intangible heritage of the Sukur cultural landscape, enhancing community capacity, strengthening local, national, and international links and networks for conserving the site’s outstanding universal values, and buttressing the resilience of the Sukur community in the face of insurgency and climate change.”
