On 13 October 2021, during a visit by a German delegation to Abuja, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on museum cooperation was signed between the Director-General of the Nigerian National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Prof. Abba Isa Tijani, and the Head of the Cultural Department at the Federal Foreign Office, Dr Andreas Görgen. The German delegation also included Prof. Dr Barbara Plankensteiner, Director of the Museum am Rothenbaum – Cultures and Arts of the World in Hamburg (MARKK) and spokesperson for the Benin Dialogue Group, as well as Prof. Dr Hermann Parzinger, President of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation.
Following an initial visit to Nigeria in May 2021, a visit by a Nigerian delegation to Berlin in early July and the current visit to Abuja, the joint agreement stipulates that the return of Benin bronzes from German museums will be embedded within broad-based cooperation in the areas of museum exchange, new museum construction and archaeology.
Both sides reaffirm that the process leading to the return of the artefacts is to begin in the second quarter of 2022 with transfers of ownership. A framework agreement is to be concluded in December 2021 for this purpose.
Both sides further agreed that Benin Bronzes will continue to be exhibited in German museums and that they will work together on exhibition projects.
Prof. Dr Barbara Plankensteiner said: “Our discussions were friendly and characterised by a high degree of agreement. I am very pleased with the outcome, which gives concrete form to the restitution plan and emphasises our future cooperation. This has enabled us to set out the concerns of all the museums involved.”
Prof. Dr Hermann Parzinger emphasised: “It is important that, following our previous meetings, we have now been able to establish a reliable basis for the return of the Benin Bronzes and for our continued cooperation at our third meeting. I am certain that this cooperation will serve as a forward-looking model for dealing with colonial looted art.”
Speaking on behalf of the Federal Foreign Office, Dr Andreas Görgen emphasised: “With this agreement, we have taken the next important step. The basis for this is the joint action by the federal government, the Länder, local authorities and museums set out in the joint declaration of 29 April 2021. With today’s progress, we are reshaping cultural policy relations with Nigeria far beyond the question of restitution.”
The next meeting has been scheduled for December 2021 in Germany.
The declaration of 29 April 2021 is available at: https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/de/newsroom/benin-bronze/2456786 (opens in new tab)
