Oba Ewuare II says about 40 looted Benin artefacts will arrive from Sweden

The Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II, said on Wednesday that about 40 artefacts taken from the kingdom during the British invasion of 1897 will be handed back from a museum in Sweden.

He announced the planned return at his palace in Benin City while receiving the chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd).

According to the monarch, the handover will combine the legal transfer of ownership with the physical delivery of the objects. He said past returns often separated the two steps, with ownership papers signed long before the works arrived home.

“Tomorrow, more artefacts are coming from that Sweden that I said, as a result of our effort many years back,” the Oba said.

Reports differ slightly on timing. BusinessDay and PM News quoted the Oba saying the artefacts were coming on Thursday, while ThisDay reported they were expected in Benin City within the week, with a delegation travelling to Lagos to receive them.

Why it matters

The Benin bronzes and other royal works are among Nigeria's best-known cultural treasures. Many were carried off during the 1897 expedition and are now held in museums across Europe.

Their return is a matter of identity and pride for the Benin people, and the palace has pushed for years to bring them home. The Oba said the campaign is not just about recovering objects but about restoring the history and dignity of the kingdom.

He traced the effort to his grandfather and father, and to his own time as Nigeria's ambassador to Scandinavian countries, including Sweden, Norway and Denmark. He recalled proposing that Benin artworks be shown to the royal families of those countries to draw attention to the kingdom's heritage.

He also said the palace fought off attempts by some people to re-loot the returned works. “We battled prospective relooters of our artefacts,” he said, vowing it would not happen while he sits on the throne.

The Oba thanked the Federal Government, traditional institutions and other partners for their support, and said he had adjusted his schedule to attend the handover himself.

Marwa seeks royal backing on drugs

Marwa, who was in Edo for an assessment visit to the NDLEA's state command and the Nigerian Army's Second Regimental Sergeant Majors Convention, praised the craftsmanship of the Benin works. “There are seven wonders of the world. Look at the eighth wonder here,” he said.

He asked the Oba to lend the weight of the throne to the fight against drug abuse, kidnapping and other crimes, as the palace did with its stand against human trafficking.

Marwa said the agency has introduced a new approach called Alternative Development, aimed at communities that grow cannabis. He said 75 per cent of the 16 million kilogrammes of illicit substances seized in six years was cannabis grown in Nigeria, with Edo among the cultivating states.

The plan, he said, is to persuade growers to switch to cassava, yam and maize, with government support for roads, schools, clinics and water. A pilot has started in three communities in Ondo State, and he said Edo could be next.

Governor Monday Okpebholo, who also received Marwa in Benin City, said drug abuse drives cultism, kidnapping and other violent crimes, and that government cannot win the fight alone.

What happens next: The artefacts are expected in Nigeria this week, with the palace set to receive them. The NDLEA will continue talks with Edo on extending its alternative development programme to cannabis-growing communities.