The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) will host a significant cultural heritage celebration on Thursday, August 28, to mark 18 years since one of Africa’s most acclaimed poets achieved prestigious international literary recognition – induction into the Memory of the World Register.
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The Christopher Okigbo Commemorative Event, scheduled to be held from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm at the UNESCO Nigeria Office in Abuja, will bring together literary scholars, cultural leaders, and heritage advocates to honour the enduring impact of the late Nigerian poet’s work on global literature. The event is a collaborative effort between UNESCO Nigeria, the Christopher Okigbo Foundation, and the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC).
This year’s commemoration operates under the theme “The Importance of Christopher Okigbo’s Nomination into the UNESCO Memory of the World Register and Its Impact on Nigeria’s Cultural Heritage and Literary History,” reflecting the international significance of his 2007 induction into the prestigious programme.
Who Was Christopher Okigbo?
Christopher Ifekandu Okigbo, born in Ojoto, Anambra State, in 1932, was a Nigerian poet who died during the Nigerian Civil War nearly six decades ago. His work uniquely blends rich Igbo cosmology with modernist poetic forms, combining traditional African spiritual and mythological elements with contemporary literary techniques. His poetry collections, including “Heavensgate” and “Limits,” continue to influence contemporary African literature and global literary discourse and remain widely studied in universities across Africa and internationally.
Patrick Oguejiofor, Secretary of the Christopher Okigbo Foundation and one of the key organisers of the event, noted the poet’s unparalleled status in African literature. “Okigbo has been recognised as the greatest poet to emerge from the African continent,” Oguejiofor stated, adding that distinguished academics and scholars will shed more light on this assessment during the commemorative event.
The UNESCO Recognition
Okigbo achieved posthumous global recognition in 2007 when his literary manuscripts were inducted into UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register, an international programme that identifies documentary heritage of world significance. The designation represents one of the highest forms of cultural recognition available to literary works and places Okigbo’s contributions alongside other globally significant historical documents and manuscripts.
His induction marked the first time a Nigerian literary figure achieved this level of international heritage recognition, serving as a significant milestone for Nigerian cultural representation on the global stage. According to the late poet’s daughter, Obiageli Okigbo, while it is the Ministry of Culture of countries that submits the entry, it is very rare for an individual artist to be included, adding that it is usually significant historical documents like the Bible, the first printed Bible, ancient Chinese texts and similar works that are included.
The Story Behind the Nomination
The path to UNESCO recognition began when the late poet’s daughter and founder of the Foundation, Obiageli (Obi) Okigbo, visited the organisation on another matter. “I went to UNESCO for another matter concerning the manuscript. Joie Springer, who was the director then, told me about the Memory of the World Register. She told me all the things I needed to do for them to support the Foundation. They have a whole category. One of the requirements was that the manuscripts had to be authenticated by their own specialists to be sure where they came from, because they had been left to me by my Uncle Pius, who had saved my dad’s things from his house before it was burnt.
“Some of them are even manuscripts of J.P. Clarke, Barry, and so on; that’s why it’s called the Okigbo Collection. There was his own poetry, his projects, publishing ideas…they were already thinking of African literature and criticism. It was actually like an archive of what was going on then, as well as his own writing,” she revealed.
The nomination was supported by distinguished scholars, including Prof. Chukwuma Azuonye, Prof. Ben Obumselu, Eduard Maunik, Lewis Nkosi, Prof. Chinua Achebe, Prof. Abiola Irele, and Ifeanyi Menkiti, who carried the intellectual weight of why the collection should be nominated. In 2007, it was included.
Continuing Relevance
Literary experts note that Okigbo’s work continues to resonate with contemporary audiences, particularly his exploration of cultural identity, colonialism’s impact, and the intersection of traditional and modern African experiences. The commemorative event indicates growing international recognition of African literary contributions to world heritage.
Ms Okigbo stated that the August 28 commemoration was to mark the publication of the Okigbo Collection and to raise awareness about the Memory of the World Register and its significance.
The event is expected to attract literary scholars, cultural historians, government officials, and members of the diplomatic community, reflecting the broad appeal and continued relevance of Okigbo’s literary contributions. The programme will include scholarly presentations, cultural performances, and discussions about the ongoing importance of preserving Nigerian literary heritage through international recognition programmes like UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register.
According to UNESCO, the status of Christopher Okigbo as the greatest Anglophonic, postcolonial, modernist African poet of the twentieth century has been established beyond all reasonable doubt not only in two major studies of his works but also in tributes paid to him in a collection of memorial tributes (Don’t Let Him Die; An Anthology of Memorial Poems for Christopher Okigbo) co-edited by Africa’s most outstanding novelist, Chinua Achebe (1978).
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