CBN partners Google for virtual currency gallery

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said the Apex bank’s in-house Information Technology Department (ITD) was partnering with Google to establish a virtual reality museum that would, “connect with the global world for the public to sit back and relax within their comfort zone and view the artifacts on display.”

CBN Deputy Governor, Operations Directorate, Mr. Folashodun Shonubi, stated this at the 2023 International Museum

Day (IMD) celebration with the theme, “Museums, Sustainability and Well-being”.

He said museums remained a key contributor to the sustainable development of the country as well as well-being of Nigerians.

Shonubi said museums all over the world, serve as heritage sites that preserve and promote the religious, cultural and historical value of objects and materials collected in showcasing knowledge, entertaining, educating, and enlightening the public on the theme as it unfolds.

The CBN deputy governor stressed that museums are channels of cultural enrichment and development of communal understanding, cooperation, and peace among people which cannot be over-emphasised.

According to him, “Museums are an informal means through which knowledge can be shared on so many levels, as they have no age barrier. The displays in the museums are designed to appeal to any audience irrespective of age, ethnic group, or gender and there should be no diversity irrespective of where you are coming from.”

He said this year’s event was particularly unique given that the apex bank was celebrating Museum Day since the outbreak and spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

He said, “It is impossible to understand the role of museums without taking into account all the connections to culture; they are an inherent part of our local communities, cultural landscape, and natural environment.”

CBN Director, Currency Operations Department, Mr. Ahmed Umar, noted that digital innovations could make museums more accessible and engaging thereby helping audiences understand complex and nuanced concepts.

He said, “We are in the process of making sure that our museums have gone digital by way of Virtual Reality Museum where you sit back in your comfort zone and take a view through our currency museum gallery coming soon.”

He noted that the International Museum Day celebration was introduced in 1977 by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) to celebrate museums all over the world.