A nation without a past is without a present and future. Safe keeping Nigeria’s material and non-material historical memories via museums enables the country to realise where it is coming from and encourages it to move towards the future in peace and unity.
A museum is endowed with many materials information that can enrich and improve peaceful social system. As a medium for promoting peace and unity, the museum tells the story of man, world over and how humanity has survived over the years. It houses the cultural soul of the nation. That is, the cultural wealth of the nation in trust for all generations by its functions and uniqueness position, and cultural consciences.
But, today, Nigeria has myriads of problems, such as kidnapping, drug abuse, prostitutions militancy and insurgence of Boko Haram, which are threatening its continued co-existence of its federal unity.
Museums promote unity in the society using its resources to ensure understanding and appreciation of various groups and cultures. Peace is essential for happiness in the family. For example, museums’ collections will foster the commonality of society that unites the various ethnic groups that make up the country and can reconcile conflict through various educational programmes and activities that would sensitise collective goodwill of the nation. Similarly, using cultural and natural heritage potentiality in his custody to influence the psyche and attitudes of our people, hence to encourage peace, unity and understanding in the communities of the larger world.
Going by the decline in economic growth, employment, uproar of social ills, it would be worthwhile for us to venture into using the country’s cultural and natural heritage as an alternative means of promoting peace, unity, employment generations, and also enhancing revenue generation, instead of concentrating on the production of crude oil, which might go into extinction.
This assertion tallies with the submission by Dr. Omotoso Eluyemi (2003), who advocates that Nigeria’s museums need to be reinvigorated, and rejuvenated with ideas that would promote indigenous occupation of Nigerians, as mediums of curbing unemployment, enhancing manpower development, revenue generation via diversification from oil sector to non-oil sector of economy like cloth dyeing, iron smelting, wood carving, cloth weaving, sculpturing, calabash decoration, hair plating, mat-making, traditional kitchen cuisine.
Museums as cultural and natural resource centres have many potential that need to be tapped for effective economic growth, being the home-base where many cultural and natural heritage are being kept, acquired, preserved, and exhibited for public posterity, research and educational values symbolically promoting identity and peace of the country.
From the foregoing, it can be seen that museums potential can generate revenue through tourist visits to museum galleries to have sight views of both tangible and non-tangible heritages of our forefathers in display to appreciate creativity cultural and natural values of their ancestors paying token as gate fees for entering into exhibition gallery hence as a source of income for up-keeping and promoting cultural heritage.
Export permit for any contemporary artistic impression for export, seminars, cultural competitions, organised fiestas and carnivals at local and international levels, which brings him foreigners and diplomats to participate and pay for the services rendered.
Also, some of the objects in the Nigeria’s museums can be loaned for educational, exhibitions, or research for short-terms or long-terms to various countries where service fees are paid.
Thus, Nigeria’s museums have the capacity to promote national peace, unity and economy which will enhance fast and speedy national development.
- Adesiyna is Chief Museum Education Officer, National Museum, Osogbo.
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