VON, National Museums partner To Promote Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove
Voice of Nigeria has reiterated its readiness to strategically position and promote Osun Osogbo Sacred Grove in South West Nigeria and other national monuments across the country to be more prominent on the global tourism map.
The Director General, Mallam Jibrin Baba Ndace said this in Osogbo on Thursday during a courtesy visit to Osogbo Sacred Grove as part of his tour of VON Southwest Zonal Office.
The DG said promoting important tourist sites and other unique cultural aspects of the Nigerian people is in line with his vision of fostering partnership and promoting Nigeria’s heritage.
“When we talk about shaping narratives, Osun Osogbo Sacred Grove is a World Heritage Site endorsed by UNESCO as one of those products Nigeria can export to the world; of course, it is not a new brand, it is impossible for anyone interested in tourism not to know about Osun Osogbo Grove.”
“But we need to be deliberate and intentional in shaping our own narratives. Voice of Nigeria will continue to create awareness about this important site and escalate it in all our eight languages of broadcast”.
According to Ndace, Voice of Nigeria is not just the authoritative platform mandated to project Nigeria’s image to the international community, it is a medium for aggregating and telling Nigerian and African stories to the world.
The DG stressed the need for renewed partnership between the media and public institutions like the National Commission for Museums and Monuments in telling the good stories emanating from Nigeria and curate important cultural artefacts of the Nigerian people.
He said: “Voice of Nigeria is the only public platform that is to focus on international broadcast and has the mandate and vision of our founding fathers to shape positive narratives about Nigerians and Africans.”
Ndace called on the media to amplify and propagate what defines Nigeria’s uniqueness and the peculiarity of its diversity as well as its various and beautiful stories.
He said: “We must understand, especially those of us in the traditional, public and private media organizations, that we are in the age of mis-information, dis-information, fake news and sometimes outright lies about our country, our people, our culture and continent; therefore as journalists, we have the responsibility to create believable, truthful and timely narratives about our country.”
In his own remarks, the Curator and Site Manager, Osun Osogbo Sacred Grove, Mr Joseph Aworeni expressed his gratitude to the DG for choosing to partner with the National Commission for Museums and Monuments.
Aworeni said the Osun Osogbo Sacred Groove was listed the second World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and cultural Organization (UNESCO) in the year 2005.
He explained that the Grove covers about 122,000 hectares of natural tropical rainforest and is home to lots of animal species, more than 400 medicinal herbs and a hub for the celebration of Yoruba culture.
“Osun Osogbo Sacred Grove is the only place in the southwest, where the culture of the Yoruba people is well represented. The Yoruba people have many deities which are all represented at the Grove.
“The Grove usually welcomes thousands of devotees, tourists, traditional worshippers and culture enthusiasts from around the world whenever the Osun Osogbo festival is being celebrated,” he said.
The visit ended with a grand tour of the core and important areas of the sacred Osun Osogbo Grove, underscoring the partnership between Voice of Nigeria and the National Commission for Museums and Monuments.
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