Mehmet Poroy, the Turkish ambassador to Nigeria, says the Middle Eastern country has identified 76 wooden and metal artefacts believed to belong to Africa’s most populous country.
According to a release, Poroy spoke in Abuja on Thursday during a courtesy visit to Hannatu Musawa, Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism, and Creative Economy.
“Our minister of culture and tourism has identified 76 wooden and metal objects that they think might belong to Nigeria. We received information about these artefacts last May, and we are eager to see them returned to Nigeria,” Poroy was quoted as saying.
The ambassador stated that conversations for returning the antiques will begin as soon as the Nigerian government officially recognises and claims possession of them.
Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu is slated to visit Turkey next week on a state visit. Prior to his arrival, the president selected Dakingari Suleiman, former governor of Kebbi, as ambassador-designate to Turkey.
“We hope to sign a cultural cooperation agreement during the upcoming visit of Nigeria’s president to Turkey. We are committed to promoting cultural understanding and cooperation between our nations,” Poroy said of Tinubu’s trip.
According to the statement, the ambassador also spoke about plans to create a Turkish cultural centre in Nigeria to promote traditional arts and educate young Nigerian women.
Musawa emphasised the necessity of completing the cultural cooperation pact, noting Nigeria’s desire to collaborate with Turkey on film industry initiatives, cultural exchanges, and empowering women in fashion.
She also mentioned the possibility for a Turkey-Nigeria collaboration to foster cultural understanding and economic progress.
“This is a golden opportunity for both countries to strengthen cultural diplomacy. Nigeria is the gateway to talking to the black global community, purely because of our numbers and strength of expression,” Musawa said.
The minister asked authorities to speed up the process of finalising the cultural cooperation agreement between the two countries.
