The return of the Edo Museum of West African Arts (EMOWA) and the Oba Akenzua Cultural Centre to the Oba of Benin by the Edo State Government has been described as a major policy decision by Governor Monday Okpebholo.
The State Commissioner for Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Hon. Chris Okaeben, stated this on Wednesday at the bi-monthly press briefing organised by the Ministry of Information and Strategy in Benin City.
Okaeben said contrary to claims that the European Union invested in the Museum of West African Art (MOWAA), the EU only provided a grant in support of the project.
He said the Edo State Government, in addition to providing the land, invested N3.8 billion in the project, which would now revert to its original name, EMOWA.
The commissioner described the emergence of the Okpebholo administration as a blessing to the people of Edo, saying the state’s traditional and cultural values had suffered setbacks due to cultism and kidnapping before the administration took steps to restore security and sanity.
He also announced that the Edo Carnival, aimed at promoting unity among the people of the state, would hold in December.
Okaeben added that the ministry had commenced the grading of hotels across the state as part of efforts to improve tourism.
“We are partnering with investors on heritage sites. Benin moat is one of the state’s most important heritage sites for
Also speaking, the Special Adviser to Governor Okpebholo on Health Matters, Dr Andrew Iyamu, disclosed that the state government was reviving the Edo Pharmaceutical Company for local drug production.
Iyamu said the state currently had 35 general hospitals, noting that several facilities that had remained moribund for years had been reopened and restored to functionality.
He said the administration had recruited 1,500 health workers across various cadres, while 65 Primary Health Care Centres had also been renovated.
The Executive Secretary of the Edo State Drugs Management Agency (DMA), Dr Kenny Okojie, said the state had rehabilitated its drug warehouses and stocked them to about 90 per cent capacity with medicines for distribution to health facilities and the private sector at affordable prices.
She also disclosed that the state government was providing free malaria treatment to residents at health facilities across the state.
According to her, the government was also collaborating with pharmaceutical manufacturing companies to establish operations in the state and create employment opportunities.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Prince Kassim Afegbua, acknowledged concerns over the poor condition of some roads in the state.
Afegbua said many of the roads inherited by the Okpebholo administration from previous administrations, particularly the immediate past administration of Godwin Obaseki, were poorly constructed.
He, however, assured residents that the state government would commence massive road rehabilitation and construction, including roads within Government Reserved Areas (GRAs), after the rainy season.
