Rebuilding Ugwu Ekwema Project

Ekwema Cultural Heritage Foundation

The Changing State of Ugwu Ekwema Heritage Centre

(Formerly Owerri Municipal Multi-purpose Civic Center)

Regrettably, the Ugwu Ekwema has not been given appropriate recognition and status as the first home of our founding father. It has not been properly preserved and developed as a Heritage Centre and a tourist site. Furthermore, it has an uncompleted project which has been abandoned for many years. It will be very sad and unfortunate if this noble project is allowed to rot. In addition, it has the following features:

Not properly preserved and developed as a heritage centre and a tourist site;
No appropriate recognition and status as the first home of our founding father, Ekwema Arugo;
Uncompleted project abandoned for many years and allowed to dilapidate, decay and rot away;
Premises very unkept and overgrown with weeds;
Outside fence cluttered with ramshackle kiosks and serves as parking lot to commercial vehicles;
Entrance gate often turned into a waste dump site and covered with increasing heaps of refuse from the Relief Market.

Benefits of Completing Ugwu Ekwema Heritage Centre Project

The proposed project has provision for a Town Hall, Heritage Museum, Restaurant, Skill Acquisition Centre, meeting rooms, offices, etc. If the project is completed it will be of immense benefit to the indigenes of Owere Municipality, the State Capital, and the entire Imo State. The benefits will include:

A new befitting landmark to behold in the capital city;
A modern Town Hall that will serve as venue to several socio-cultural events;
A Heritage Museum that will elucidate the culture and history of Owere Nshi Ise as well as the socio-economic development of Owerri before and after the colonial era, with wide collection of annotated historical photographs, artefacts, relics and memorabilia;
A Training and Skill Acquisition Centre that will provide special training and skills to empower our teeming young population for gainful employment, and curb youth restiveness;
A tourist attraction site and a place to relax and enjoy Owere music by city residents and visitors coming from outside Owerri who would like to know about Owere, its culture and history;
A modern restaurant that will serve both oriental and continental dishes, including our special cuisine, Ofe Owere, and other native grubs and delicacies;
A symbol of strength and unity that will help to nurture and further cement the bond of love, common purpose and cohesion within and amongst the five villages;
Deepening the essence and core values of Oru Owere and strengthening the Age Grade system in our tradition and culture, and over time transforming the Age Grade (Ebiri) procession into a special annual carnival;
Boosting the Oru Owere festival and making it one of the milestone events in the state that may become a unique fair that will attract guest participants, visitors and tourists from within and outside the country, thereby contributing positively to the economy of our dear state;
Encouraging and uplifting Owere people in diaspora (Owere n’uzo ije) to regularly visit home and further support the development of the city and state;
Providing a veritable area for studies and research on Owere history and culture, particularly in the field of anthropology;
Helping to spur the younger generation to have a sense of belonging and strong belief in our culture, history and heritage; and
Generating revenue that will not only make the Ugwu Ekwema Heritage Centre self-sustaining, but can support other community projects in Owere Nshi Ise.

Images of the Proposed New Ugwu Ekwema Cultural Heritage Civic Center

Project Implementation Plan

The key elements of the project implementation plan include:

Creation of critical subcommittees of identified professionals of Owere Nshi Ise indigenes whose expertise and experience are relevant to the project;
Technical assessment and evaluation of the current state of the abandoned Ugwu Ekwema Heritage Center project, with concrete suggestions and recommendation, where necessary;
Development of detailed work plan with technical drawings and realistic costing at various stages of the project;
Resource mobilization / soliciting for funds from within and outside Owere Nshi Ise, our brothers and sisters in diaspora, our in-laws and friends, and from public and private organisations within and outside Nigeria.
Project execution, including monitoring and evaluation; and
Project commissioning.