African Heritage Foundation Nigeria works hand-in-hand to give voice to the African Cultural Heritage by making it known as it was and restoring the lost arts and practices of the Heritage.
African heritage, in particular, is essential because it is deeply rooted in the history, culture, and traditions of the African people, and it reflects the rich and complex diversity of the continent.
The Foundation is dedicated to examining the full range of socio-political, historical and technological factors that influence African culture and heritage across the world. The African Heritage Foundation Nigeria believes in setting and maintaining standards while adding value to all stakeholders involved. This includes promoting our African cultural heritage and provision of humanitarian support to the less fortunate, victims of natural and man-made disasters in Nigeria and across the world.
The Organization is as well committed to pursue in its programs, humanitarian work, sex gender justice, and cultural activities that leads to special Award Project in Africa.
Heritage being the customs, traditions, beliefs, or historical artifacts that are passed down from generation to generation, it shapes the identity and culture of a particular group or community. Heritage plays a significant role in preserving cultural diversity and maintaining the cultural identity of different communities across the world.
The African Heritage Foundation Nigeria has a background of a universal human fraternity and brotherhood that was destroyed by the veritable and cut-throat survival of the fittest relationship founded upon collective brotherhood to that of predatory proclivity.
Not keeping one's heritage can have significant repercussions on a group of people and some of them are clearly seen in our Loss of Identity. Heritage is an essential element of personal and collective identity, and its loss can lead to the loss of one's identity, cultural background, and traditional values. Also, Cultural Erosion is another danger we face when we don't keep our culture. Failing to preserve cultural heritage can lead to the cultural erosion of societies, which would lead to the disappearance of cultural practices, norms, and beliefs.
Loss of Historical Perspective is almost out of sight. Heritage provides perspective to historical events, and its loss can lead to the loss of historical perspective that is critical to the understanding of our past.
Economic Loss: Cultural heritage can offer economic opportunities such as tourism, local enterprise, and infrastructural improvements. Losing one's heritage can lead to the loss of economic opportunities for citizens.
Environmental Loss: Heritage sites, monuments and cultural activities are some of the ways in which environmental preservation often coexists with cultural renewal, thus failure to preserve heritage can lead to loss of environmental beauty and important ecological sites that house various species.
"We shall instill / restore supporting livelihood to people stricken with hardship due to conflicts / disasters wherein use education, corporate experience and love to make profound changes in the lives of people and to commit a practical demonstration and display of universal human love upon which human essence is founded, particularly on charity related activities" African Heritage Foundation Nigeria decided.
Restoring African Heritage is possible and to do that, we must engage in Research and Documentation. The first step in restoring lost cultural heritage is to research and document what has been lost. It is essential to retrieve as much information as possible about the customs, traditions, language, music, art, and other cultural practices.
Collaboration: Collaboration between communities, individuals, and governments is critical in restoring lost cultural heritage. Sharing knowledge and resources can help in rebuilding traditional practices and customs.
Education: Education and awareness can help in restoring cultural heritage, as it enables people to appreciate and understand the importance of their cultural identity.
Revitalization: Revitalizing traditional practices and customs can help restore lost cultural heritage. This can range from promoting traditional dance, music, and art to teaching and learning traditional languages.
Preservation: Preservation through restoration and conservation of ancient artifacts, historical sites, monuments, and artifacts can help in restoring cultural heritage.
Community involvement: It is essential to involve communities in restoring lost cultural heritage as they have firsthand experience and knowledge of their customs and traditions. Collaboration with individuals within communities in the process can result in more meaningful and sustainable results.
Restoring lost cultural heritage requires a combined effort from individuals, communities, educational institutions, non-profit organizations, governmental and intergovernmental bodies. With a concerted effort, we can rebuild and restore what has been lost and ensure that future generations appreciate and adopt their cultural heritage.
Boosting Tourism: Cultural heritage can be an important tourist attraction, bringing in revenue and boosting the economy. This can benefit the national and local economy and promote regional development, creating job opportunities in the tourism industry and related sectors.
Preserves cultural identity: Cultural heritage tells the story of a nation’s history, identity, and provides a sense of place and belonging for its people. In preserving cultural heritage, it also contributes to the social fabric and unity of a country, while promoting national identity.
Education and research: Cultural heritage provides an educational resource that enriches the curriculum and fosters curiosity, promoting the learning of different traditional practices, languages and customs, which is critical to establishing a deeper understanding of nations' and regions' history and identity.
Eco-tourism: Cultural heritage sites that are well-preserved and well-managed can also provide opportunities for eco-tourism, highlighting the natural and cultural history of a region whilst providing economic and environmental benefits to the local communities.
International Relations: The promotion of cultural heritage’s efforts can facilitate international cooperation and promote harmony between different nations, which can provide an avenue to create shared cultural exchanges by bringing people from different parts of the world together.
Hence, cultural heritage has enormous value in national and international development because of its contributions to human and economic development, preservation of cultural identity, expanding educational and vocational opportunities, and promoting international relations. It is, therefore, crucial to preserve and promote cultural heritage both nationally and internationally, as it holds the key to our past and serves as a foundation for future development projects.
The vision of African Heritage Foundation Nigeria and the Peopleshub Organization in Partnership is to root the African people in their cultural heritage through social and economic development, so that they share rich history and culture of Africa through beauty of arts in human nature;and to adhere to our belief that”every human being has a precious life of equal value and with self confidence.
