The concept of Museums has been viewed by many scholars and in view of this gave rise most likely to the various definitions that abound. However, the commonly accepted definition is one adopted by the International Council of Museums: ICOM 2022, where it defined the Museum as:
A not-for-profit permanent institution in the service of society that researches, collects, conserves, interprets and exhibits tangible and intangible heritage. Open to the public, accessible and inclusive, museums foster diversity and sustainability. They operate and communicate ethically, professionally and with the participation of communities, offering varied experiences for education, enjoyment, reflection and knowledge sharing.
The main features that emerged from the above definition are:
- The museum is a not-for-profit permanent public institution; and
- The main functions are researching, collecting, conserving, interpreting and exhibiting objects of cultural and educational values which are both tangible and intangible heritages.
The Museum in Nigeria is not different from the general museum worldwide. The Nigerian museum has among other functions, the acquisition of museum artifacts or collections through donations by individuals. For instance, the National Museum Jos collections at the early stage were made up of mainly donations of cultural objects by individuals; through purchases and through archeological excavations. This practice which dates back to pre -historic times is a very important means by which most Nigerian museums acquire artifacts.
Okpoko, A. I (2011:50) stated that the functions of Nigerian museums range from acquiring and caring for objects to satisfying and promoting the needs of the public. One way of satisfying the needs of the public by the museums is through exhibition and display of cultural objects, conducted in both ethnographic and archeological means. In doing these, the museum attempts to take care of the interests of the various categories of persons in the society. The adults for example need guide and guide books to give them useful explanations regarding the types and functions of artifacts and their probable ages and places of origin, while the children are more interested in the aesthetic or creative aspects of these objects. Similarly, the students and teachers interested in carrying out researches in the museums are given the necessary support and cooperation.
The Nigerian museums are aware of the fact that their role does not terminate or end with the collection and exhibition of cultural and art objects but extends to education of the general public, to make them understand, appreciate and value these objects; hence the introduction of guide tours and lectures for adult visitors and V.I.Ps which are now considered the normal features of Nigerian museums nationwide.
Despite the above services rendered by the museums to the public , it is pertinent to point out that more than half of Nigeria’s population is not too interested in patronizing museums because they are ignorant of the place of museums in the future development of Nigeria. This development is a revelation of the dearth in public awareness of the importance of the museum. For instance, most of the museums in Nigeria witness low turnout of visitors and researchers annually when compared to the size of the population of the towns the museums are located. One easily identifiable reason for the low morale on the part of the public concerning the museum is traceable, though partly to the fact that the Nigerian museums, like the other museums around Africa are yet to assume or adopt a wholly African character. The inability to assume a wholly African character may partly be as a result of the colonial legacies inherited by the African museums. Most of the museums in Africa have not succeeded in placing the masses as the focal point of their activities. By implication therefore, they cannot in reality serve the aspirations of the people or match their quest and determination for cultural freedom and renaissance, Nigeria inclusive. Hence, the belief in several quarters that indeed these museums are not poised yet to fully harness their potentials and gear up towards solving both the present and future social and economic challenges in Nigeria and Africa generally.
I consider it a great disservice not to mention the giant contributions of the proponents of museums in Nigeria (K.C Murray, A. Hunt - Cooke and J.O Field) who had as their initial objective I would say the integration of the museums with programs for regenerating and developing rural crafts and industries and this wise considered it best that the museums are established close to the localities from which most of their collections came from. They also recommended the teaching of local crafts in schools. This scheme, if followed and properly implemented would have enhanced " the prestige of the local craftsmen and their products and in several ways assisted in giving the local crafts a pride of place in the society, and by extension reduce drastically the tendency to despise indigenous arts and crafts as backward and unfashionable"(Murray and Hunt -Cooke, 1760).
The first museum conceived by these exponents was rural in orientation and with a problem solving device targeted at resolving the problems confronting rural industries, which were fast decaying and going into extinction. The derailment of this process is setting up of museums in the urban centers, a development that can be considered a compromise with the colonial office through the colonial government. This reasoning holds because the founding fathers were in dire need of the approval and funds from the colonial office, without which their vision were likely not to become a reality (Afigbo, 1985: 32-50; Abadom, 1998: 103-104). Abadom further argued that if the first museums were set up in rural areas like Esie or Nok, they would not have stirred nonchalant attitude of the people but instead elicit their support and commitment, since such museums would have contained the objects to which the people would have been emotionally attached.
A look at some of the objectives of colonial office in setting up museums in Nigeria may throw some light on the failure of the museums in Nigeria and Africa as a whole, and explain though not in detail the inability of the museums to meet the present aspirations of the African people. It has further been argued that the setting up of museums in colonial Africa was to some extent, related to the fundamental economic motives of the Europeans. In the determination of the colonialists to have full control of the Nigerian system, it became necessary for them to understudy and understand the history and culture of the Nigerian. Thus, the geological, biological and other specimens housed in early museums in Nigeria were used to know more about the economic potentials of the colony.
There was in Europe, in the late 19th and 20th centuries, a development of interest in the scientific study of human evolution. Fossil hominids, paleontological finds and stone tools formed the nucleus of museums in most part of Africa and Nigeria in particular. These museums were set up primarily to serve the interest of the imperialists. This account for the distribution of museums in urban centers instead of the rural areas; and even the museums still follow European models in their style and exhibition, and method of display, with captions written in foreign languages instead of indigenous languages. Abadom (1998:11) pointed out that in our museum displays, attempts must be made to reflect inner forces that motivate the creation of the cultural objects:
a) Through verbal means - use of folklores, proverbs, parables and riddles.
b) Through audio -visual means: sounds, music, illustration, slide and film shows etc.
c) Through demonstrating the technological techniques of productions e.g establishing artisan villages or handicraft museums.
In the light of the above blueprint, this paper wishes to note a heartwarming development, the fact that the challenges of the Nigerian museum of the past as identified in this paper (Abadom 1998:11) is receiving urgent and very strategic attention from the National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Nigeria.
Some Challenges that were and some being currently addressed by the Commission
- Provision of audio-visual equipment’s in our museum galleries e.g LED television sets for films and videos, home theatre sound systems for cultural music and demonstration of the technological techniques of productions e.g blacksmithing etc.
- Provision of security and surveillance equipment across museums located in the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria, e.g. CCTV cameras, and digital cameras
- Renovation and upgrading of most museum galleries nationwide e.g. Lagos, Benin, Ilorin, Ibadan and Enugu museums, just to mentioned a few.
- Construction of new museum facilities in selected museums, e.g. Enugu Museum,
- Training and retraining of conservators in partnership with UNESCO and Ford foundation, USA, this is in line with international best practices.
- Return of Nigeria's precious and priceless artifacts from Europe through astute and dogged diplomatic negotiations, e.g. the Benin bronzes forcefully carted away in 1897 during the invasion and looting of the Great Benin kingdom. This was a milestone achievement as the historic event has rekindled high cultural consciousness and heritage awareness within the Benin kingdom, Nigeria and Africa, and other parts of the globe.
Artifacts like the Benin Bronzes attract tourism and can be a method of generating economic wealth, something the West African Nations have been deprived of through post-colonialism. In short, these works are being reunited with their original communities: objects which formed an important aspect of their collective identity. In addition to the ritual and utilitarian purposes, some of these objects were documented people and events and were thus a store of memory in addition to verbal modes of knowledge sharing. The 'memory loss' created by the looting of these objects in part contributed to the stunted cultural development of the affected communities and the Nigerian state.
The return from Europe of the precious and priceless artifacts of the Benin bronzes forcefully carted away in 1897 during the invasion and looting of the Great Benin kingdom, is a historic event that has led to the decision to build an Edo Museum of West African Art (EMOWAA) and a Research Institute in the ancient city of Benin to display, conserve, store and advance research aimed at restoring the stories contained in these objects.
From the developmental strides identified in this paper it is evident that the Nigerian museum is in the light of the focused activities of the Nigerian Commission for Museums and Monument gradually repositioning the Nigerian museums towards serving Nigeria's social, economic and technological needs, as well as striving so hard to meet the greater aspirations of the people for their individual, collective and nation developmental needs.
To sustain the foregoing milestone efforts and achievements of the Commission, this paper is recommending increased funding, improved budgetary practices and enhanced private sector engagement and participations through strategic partnerships, collaborative initiatives and others systematic approaches, with the non-governmental organizations (NGOs), institutions and groups in the operations of the Commission to ensure greater development of the museum in Nigeria.
In conclusion, the Nigerian museum, arguably the foremost cultural institution in Nigeria must trend and remain continually engaging, retooling and focused on giving the country undiluted cultural identity by infusing into the Nigerian system lasting values for national development.
REFERENCES
Abadom, M. (1998): The Museum in Nigeria; In search of a workable future. West African Journal of Archaeology, Vol.28 (1) 95-114.
Andre Desvallees, Francois M: Key Concepts of Museology, Armand Colin, ICOM Publication, (2010).
Okpoko, A.I (2011): Fundamental of Museum Practice, Second Edition, UNN Press Nsukka, Nigeria, 50-60.
Https://icom.museums/en/resources/standards-guidelines/museum-definition/
Https://businessday.ng/opinion/article/returned-benin-bronzes-great-now-what
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