THE significant contributions of activist and journalist Jahman Oladejo Anikulapo to cultural advocacy and boosting Nigeria and Africa’s creative industry have been recognised with the UNESCO Defender of Cultural Rights Award 2024 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Anikulapo, a Theatre Arts graduate of the University of Ibadan, is the ex-editor of The Guardian on Sunday. He served as the newspaper’s Arts Editor for several years. He took over from his mentor, the inimitable dramatist, journalist and communicator Ben Tomoloju, who clocked 70 in December. Anikulapo raised a new generation of arts journalists who have since gone on to edit reputable Nigerian newspapers.
For Anikulapo, founder of Culture Caucus Advocate (CAC) and Programme Chair of the Committee for Relevant Art (CORA), journalism was more than reportage or entertainment. It is advocacy, and throughout his years in active journalism, he sought to influence policies with insightful and robust reportage and analysis.
The award given to him on December 13 by the International Centre for the Promotion of Human Rights (CIPDH) under the auspices of UNESCO acknowledges Anikulapo’s dedication to uplifting African culture locally and globally and his impact in fostering literary communities, empowering creatives, and advocating for the preservation and promotion of Africa’s cultural heritage.
It is a well-deserved honour for Anikulapo and a significant boost to Nigeria and Africa’s cultural landscape on the global stage. The UNESCO Recognition for Cultural Rights Defenders Award also highlights cultural rights’ importance and the continent’s pivotal role in the international cultural landscape.
In a recorded message sent to the awards ceremony, Anikulapo reiterated his lifelong mission of using cultural advocacy to create a better world for the human family. He noted that the award is an added impetus for him to continue deploying culture to elevate humanity.
“I’m honoured to be conferred with the CIPDH UNESCO Recognition for Cultural Rights Defenders Award. Arts liberates. Culture elevates. Humanity is divine. Arts and culture are the two special vehicles I have relied on and deployed to advocate for promoting and preserving human values and principles in my over four decades of endeavours as a literary and performing artist, journalist and advocate.
“I’m ever convinced that the sanity, dignity and elevation of our collective humanity can be easily achieved through intentional, appropriate and effective cultural education for members of the human family. I’m indeed doubly honoured to be recognised for the modest work I have done over these decades. I’m assured that I should not relent in pursuing my life’s mission: advocacy for the betterment of our common humanity.”
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