The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO, has just inscribed the Sango Oyo Festival in the lists of World Heritage.
The body inscribed it in the 2023 Eighteenth Session of the Intergovernmental Committee Convention For The Safeguarding of The Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Reacting to the development, the Oyo State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Dr. Wasiu Olatubosun, said that had ranked Oyo State, Nigeria amongst the countries of the world as a giant in the tourism industry, by extension, cultural proliferation.
According to him, the next Sango festival in Oyo town which holds in August 2024, would be witnessed by over 2000 international tourists across 167 countries of UNESCO.
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Dr. Wasiu Olatubosun hinted at UNESCO recognition of the festival during the last Sango festival in August 19 this year.
Olatubosun expressed optimism at the feat, saying “it is a beacon of expansion in the economy sector of the state, as well as unprecedented growth in the hospitality business, with the astronomical influx of tourists in a space of time.”
The session, chaired by Mr Mustaq Moorad, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of the Republic of Botswana to UNESCO, is currently ongoing at Kasane, in the Republic of Botswana from Monday 4 to Saturday 9 December 2023.
“The inscription of Sango Oyo Festival as a global recognition is a testament on the representative list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity by UNESCO”, according to the representative of the Minister of Arts and Culture and Creative Economy in Nigeria.
He added that the recognition was to further showcase the rich history of Nigeria’s cultural diversity and the significance of Sango Oyo Festival in preserving and showcasing Nigeria’s Heritage, thus acknowledging the importance of the cultural element.
The Sango Oyo festival is said to embody the spirit of unity, tradition, resilience and colour that define “our nation which serves as a beacon binding together as a people with cultural vibrancy on the global scene.”
Responding at the convention, Dr. Paula Gomes, the Cultural Ambassador to The Alaafin of Oyo appreciated the recognition by the committee for the nomination of the Sango Festival of Oyo, which had been in process for a decade, stressing the significance of Sango to the throne of Alaafin, the Yoruba Kingdom and the global community.
