Article: Sustainable safety and security at museums in Southeast Nigeria: implications for national reformation Journal: International Journal of Tourism Anthropology (IJTA) 2017 Vol.6 No.1 pp.62 - 84 Abstract: The significance of culture to Nigeria's identity, unity and development has given museums relevance in national discourse. Notwithstanding, the potentialities of museums as catalysts for national unity have been partly undermined by safety and security issues. Inspired by the recent clamour for national reformation, this study answers the following questions: What are these safety and security threats and how can museum contribute to national reformation in Nigeria? This paper, through ethnographic studies coupled with cluster and purposive sampling techniques, studied selected museums in Southeast Nigeria with a focus on safety issues. Some of the identified threats include poor maintenance culture, hostilities from host communities, criminal activities, antiquity theft and smuggling, collapse of weak structures, etc. The study further proposed 'collaborative management and research' as one of the ways of maximising the gains of museum for national reformation of Nigeria and other developing nations. The paper further argued that museum as an institution has a role to play in national reformation of the Nigerian nation by actualising true and sustained unity and that museum achieves this through the systematic reconstruction of forgotten identities and lost memories. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: Sustainable safety and security at museums in Southeast Nigeria: implications for national reformation

Authors: Elochukwu A. Nwankwo; Okechukwu O. Anozie; Uchenna H. Obieluem

Addresses: Department of Archaeology and Tourism, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria ' Humanities Unit, School of General Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria ' Department of Archaeology and Tourism, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria

Abstract: The significance of culture to Nigeria's identity, unity and development has given museums relevance in national discourse. Notwithstanding, the potentialities of museums as catalysts for national unity have been partly undermined by safety and security issues. Inspired by the recent clamour for national reformation, this study answers the following questions: What are these safety and security threats and how can museum contribute to national reformation in Nigeria? This paper, through ethnographic studies coupled with cluster and purposive sampling techniques, studied selected museums in Southeast Nigeria with a focus on safety issues. Some of the identified threats include poor maintenance culture, hostilities from host communities, criminal activities, antiquity theft and smuggling, collapse of weak structures, etc. The study further proposed 'collaborative management and research' as one of the ways of maximising the gains of museum for national reformation of Nigeria and other developing nations. The paper further argued that museum as an institution has a role to play in national reformation of the Nigerian nation by actualising true and sustained unity and that museum achieves this through the systematic reconstruction of forgotten identities and lost memories.

Keywords: museum; heritage resources; national reformation; sustainability; safety; Nigeria.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTA.2017.088025

International Journal of Tourism Anthropology, 2017 Vol.6 No.1, pp.62 - 84

Received: 22 Jul 2016
Accepted: 28 Jul 2017
Published online: 16 Nov 2017 *

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Title: Sustainable safety and security at museums in Southeast Nigeria: implications for national reformation

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