Nigeria elected into International Cultural Property Committee

Nigeria elected into International Cultural Property Committee

Nigeria has been elected into the Subsidiary Committee of the Meeting of State Parties to the 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property.

Nigeria’s election to the committee was part of the outcome of the First Session of the Committee held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France; and, a member of the Nigerian delegation, Professor Folarin Shyllon, is to serve as Vice Chairman of that committee.

While lauding Nigeria’s election into the committee, Minister of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Chief Edem Duke; added that “this development has put Nigeria in a strategic position to drive efforts aimed at addressing the challenge of illicit import, export and transfer of ownership of cultural property at the national and international levels”, according to statement signed by Dr Taiwo Oladokun, Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the minister of tourism and culture.

Nigeria thus joins 17 other countries: Oman, Peru, Pakistan, China, Romania, Mexico, Egypt, Ecuador, Bulgaria, Morocco, Chad, Madagascar, Japan, Italy, Greece, Turkey and Croatia; as members of the committee.

The Nigerian delegation to the Session was led by the Permanent Delegate and Ambassador of Nigeria to UNESCO, Mariam Katagum. Other delegates were Prof Folarin Shyllon (Focal Person), Mr. Augustus Ajibola of the tourism and culture ministry, Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Yusuf Abdallah Usman and two other National Museum staff.