The Vice-Chancellor of Lagos State University (LASU), Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello, says one of the set goals of the institution is to become the best university in West Africa.
Olatunji-Bello said this at an event organised by the university to mark International Museum Day (IMD) 2022, in Lagos.
The day is celebrated annually globally on May 18 and gives the chance for professionals to meet people and inform them about the challenges museums face.
The theme of this year’s celebration is: “The Future of Museums: Recovery and Imagine”.
Olatunji-Bello said that the importance of a museum to any society could not be underestimated.
She spoke as the university’s Centre For Museum and African Heritage (LASU-CEMAH), Ojo, as part of the celebration, inaugurated its renovated Museum located in Agege and reopened it to the public.
Olatunji-Bello said that the university was determined to position the museum to showcase knowledge and address key social issues.
This, she said, would help transform how people see the future, learn from the past and enrich history.
“One of the ways to achieve that is to introduce technology in our service, with the rise in technology usage over the last two decades.
“Modern technology is transforming museums from spaces of looking and learning to modern centres of interaction, participation and engagement.
“We are determined as a team to initiate the necessary steps towards digitisation and innovation with the use of technology.
“This is very critical towards attaining our set goal of becoming the Best University in West Africa,” she said.
Olatunji-Bello said that according to the American Alliance of Museums, in the United States of America, about 80 per cent of the museums provided educational programmes for children.
“The museum has the power to reflect and shape our society.
“The LASU museum is one of the research missions of the university and established to collect cultural artifact for preservation, conservation, exhibition, display, research and documentation.
“Despite the setback of losing a portion of our museum land to the general interest of the Lagos State, the LASU Museum is not discouraged in any way in the pursuit of her mandate,” she said.
Olatunji-Bello promised that the management would provide modern facilities and state-of-the-art equipment for cutting edge scientific and technological researches, to make LASU museum more functional.
The Director, LASU Museum, Dr Maruf Animashaun said it was a glorious achievement for the university and an advantage for the renovated museum to be opened to the public.
“Museum day is an occasion to raise awareness on the importance of museums in the preservation of the universal heritage for global cultural integration and peace.
“LASU Museum was established in the year 2002 as arts craft collection centre under the administration of the then vice-chancellor, Prof. Abisogun Leigh.
“LASU Museum is the first university museum to reproduce antiquities of 2000 years of Nigerian history, namely NOK, Ife, Benin and other culture in Nigeria.
“At the museum, we now have adequate space for development, office accommodation for staff and functional facilities,” he said.
Animashaun urged Nigerians to make good use of the museum.