The National Archives of Nigeria has its headquarters in Abuja,

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

, with branches in Enugu,

Ibadan Ibadan (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano, with a total population of 3,649,000 as of 2021, and over 6 million people within its me ...

, and

Kaduna Kaduna is the capital city of Kaduna State, and the former political capital of Northern Nigeria. It is located in north-western Nigeria, on the Kaduna River. It is a trade Centre and a major transportation hub as the gateway to northern Nige ...

. As of 2017, the current Director of Archives is Mr. Danjuma Dambring Fer.

History

Professor Kenneth Onwuka Dike did a survey of Nigerian public records from 1951 to 1953. Based on what was found, he made a recommendation to have a public record office. This led to the founding of the Nigerian Record Office on April 1, 1954. In 1957, the Public Archives Ordinance No. 43 was enacted and became effective on November 14, 1957. It changed the name of the archives to become the National Archives of Nigeria. The archive was housed at the

University of Ibadan The University of Ibadan (UI) is a public research university in Ibadan, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1948 as University College Ibadan, one of many colleges within the University of London. It became an independent university in 19 ...

until 1958. The Federal Government provided £51,000 to create the first permanent building in Ibadan in the First Economic Programme, 1955–60. This building officially opened on January 9, 1959.

Past Leadership

Kenneth Dike Kenneth Onwuka Dike (17 December 1917 – 26 October 1983) was a Nigerian educationist, historian and the first Nigerian Vice-Chancellor of the nation's premier college, the University of Ibadan. During the Nigerian civil war, he moved to Harva ...

was originally appointed the Government Supervisor of Public Records and then the Director of the Archives from 1954 to 1963. He is also considered to be the father of the Nigerian Archives. * Lloyd C. Gwam followed soon afterwards on April 1, 1964, to become the Director of the Archives until his death on July 2, 1965. * S.O. Sowoolu succeeded Mr. Gwam and is credited for starting the expansion of the archives.

Locations

The National Archives of Nigeria has fifteen offices. The three main archive locations are zonal offices. Each location keeps records of colonial administration relating to its particular region, along with newspapers and official government publications.

Zonal offices

* Enugu (east, est. 1958) *

(west, est. 1958) *

(north)

Branch offices

Abeokuta Abeokuta is the capital city of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria. It is situated on the east bank of the Ogun River, near a group of rocky outcrops in a wooded savanna; north of Lagos by railway, or by water. , Abeokuta and the surrounding a ...

(est. 1989) * Abuja (headquarters) *

Akure Akure is a city in south-western Nigeria. It is the capital and largest city of Ondo State. The city had a population of 403,000 as at the 2006 population census. History Pre 1914 Rock engravings dating back to the Mesolithic period, ha ...

(est. 1985) *

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...

(est. 1982) *

Calabar Calabar (also referred to as Callabar, Calabari, Calbari and Kalabar) is the capital city of Cross River State, Nigeria. It was originally named Akwa Akpa, in the Efik language. The city is adjacent to the Calabar and Great Kwa rivers and c ...

(est. 1986) * Ilorin (est. 1985) * Jos (est. 1989) *

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 fo ...

* Maiduguri (est. 2005) *

Owerri Owerri ( , ) is the capital city of Imo State in Nigeria, set in the heart of Igboland. It is also the state's largest city, followed by Orlu, Okigwe and Ohaji/Egbema. Owerri consists of three Local Government Areas including Owerri Municipal, ...

(est. 1986) * Port Harcourt (est. 1986) *

Sokoto Sokoto is a major city located in extreme northwestern Nigeria, near the confluence of the Sokoto River and the Rima River. As of 2006 it has a population of over 427,760. Sokoto is the modern-day capital of Sokoto State and was previously the ...

(est. 1982)

Professional memberships

National

* Historical Society of Nigeria * Oral History/Tradition Association of Nigeria * Society of Nigerian Archivists

Regional

* Society of African Archivists *West African Regional Branch of the International Council on Archives (WARBICA)

International

* Association of Commonwealth Archivists and Record Managers *

International Council on Archives The International Council on Archives (ICA; French: ''Conseil international des archives'') is an international non-governmental organization which exists to promote international cooperation for archives and archivists. It was set up in 1948, wi ...

(ICA) * International Records Management Council

References

Bibliography

;published in 20th century * (About National Archives) * * National Archives of Nigeria (1985). National Archives of Nigeria: Its purpose, development and functions. * (About National Archives) * * * * * * * * ;published in 21st century * Abiola Abioye (2007). "Fifty years of archives administration in Nigeria: lessons for the future". ''Records Management Journal''. 17(1). doi:10.1108/09565690710730697. * (Includes information about National Archives) * * * *
Abstract
Paper presented at conference in Senegal "Archives of Post-Independence Africa and its Diaspora" * *

External links

Official site
* Federal Ministry of Information and Culture
National Archives of Nigeria
(via Archive.org) *

American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...

, Archives Wiki
National Archives of Nigeria
detailed listing) * (video) {{Authority control

Archives in Nigeria History of Nigeria Buildings and structures in Ibadan 1954 establishments in Nigeria Organizations based in Abuja