Year of creation: 1998
Domain(s):

- oral traditions and expressions
- performing arts
- social practices, rituals and festive events
- knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe
- traditional craftsmanship
- other
- revival and rehabilitation of wawa igbo intangible resources,TK,Tces and Folklore; poverty reduction between among the indigenious peoples; re-establishment and modern application of indigenious conflict resolution systems

Safeguarding measures:

- identification, documentation, research (including inventory-making)
- preservation, protection
- promotion, enhancement
- transmission, (non-)formal education
- revitalization
- other
- legal advocacy legislative draftsmanship

Main countries where active:

Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal

Objectives:
... Main objectives of the Organization:
1. Rediscovery and promotion of the intellectual and traditional knowledge of the Igbos
relating to its traditional medical knowledge and practices;
2. Protection of the masquerade and oracular prophetic practices of the Igbos, Wawa
people as they extend in Nigeria, Ghana, Cote d'lvoire and Senegal;
3. Defense and sustenance of the natural and customary practices of the indigenous
African people under the context of foreign religion and globalization which exterminate
the
population's social and economic existence;
4. Sensitization of the intellectual class in Africa on the issues that border on African
intellectual property and folklore;
5. Research and publications on African intellectual and folklore history and issues by
collating end reports of conferences and workshops.
6. Poverty reduction programs to ensure environmental and economic sustainability for
the Wawas in 19boland spread through the four West African states;
7. Designing relevant programs that will impact positively and contextualize the
millennium development goals in the lives and customs of the Wawas in 19boland,
especially those in tension soaked Niger delta of Nigeria.

1. Rediscovery and promotion of the intellectual and traditional knowledge of the Igbos relating to its traditional medical knowledge and practices;

2. Protection of the masquerade and oracular prophetic practices of the Igbos, Wawa people as they extend in Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal;

3. Defense and sustenance of the natural and customary practices of the indigenous African people under the context of foreign religion and globalization which exterminate the population’s social and economic existence;

4. Sensitization of the intellectual class in Africa on the issues that border on African intellectual property and folklore;
5. Research and publications on African intellectual and folklore history and issues by collating end reports of conferences and workshops.

6. Poverty reduction programs to ensure environmental and economic sustainability for the Wawas in Igboland spread through the four West African states;

7. Designing relevant programs that will impact positively and contextualize the millennium development goals in the lives and customs of the Wawas in Igboland, especially those in tension soaked Niger delta of Nigeria.

Activities:
1. We have embarked upon documentation and profiling of the intellectual properties and folklore of the Wawa people of West Africa with a view to seeking legislative and copyright protection of these activities, previously undocumented;
2. Publication of well researched articles and books on Wawa indigenous people that will itemize the various cultural properties and rights of the people to sensitize the world and national governments on the areas which are threatened with distinction.
3. Organizing workshops and attending global fora of world indigenous peoples to present the perceived areas of injustice and marginalization which have threatened them with extinction and permanent dislocation in the geography of their present locations in West Africa.
4. Collaboration with all other individuals and organizations which promote and defend the intellectual property and folklore of indigenous people worldwide with a view to exchanging information and visits from other parts of the world;
5. Making representation to governments in the four West African countries to recognize and adopt best practices and conventions on world indigenous intellectual rights and properties.
6. Policy advocacy on curriculum change, legal reform and cultural promotion of the intellectual property of the Wawas and Igbos in West Africa.

Year of creation: 2009
Domain(s):

- oral traditions and expressions
- performing arts
- social practices, rituals and festive events
- knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe
- traditional craftsmanship

Safeguarding measures:

- identification, documentation, research (including inventory-making)
- preservation, protection
- promotion, enhancement
- transmission, (non-)formal education
- revitalization

Main countries where active:

Ethiopia, France, Germany, Nigeria, Togo, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Year of creation: 1992
Domain(s):

- oral traditions and expressions
- performing arts
- social practices, rituals and festive events
- knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe
- traditional craftsmanship

Safeguarding measures:

- identification, documentation, research (including inventory-making)
- preservation, protection
- promotion, enhancement
- transmission, (non-)formal education

Main countries where active:

Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria

Objectives:
Towards finding solutions to problems relating to culture, environment, oppressions and under development of the Kanuri indigenous people of Africa. To work on cultural preservation indegnious issues as well as promotion tourism through promoting cultural artifacts, sites and the history of the Kanuri community as well as through documentation, research, oral tradition and expressions.
To educate the people of the semi-arid north-east of Nigeria on the implications of desert encroachment and the other environmental hazards that might be detrimental to their society.
To generate and implement short, medium and long term interventions that would address the problems of desertification and other arising environmental threats. To identify and explore un-harnessed environmental resources for the benefit of the society. To liaise and collaborate with relevant government agencies an non-governmental organisations to address the problems of the environment for the benefit of the society.
Activities:
Educating the Kanuri indigenous people towards cultural preservation, desert control, small scale industries, standing for their rights and the way forward in reviving their pastoral economy that is facing lots of challenges (including natural and man made). We just participated at the intergouvernmental committee on intellectual property genetic resources and folklore between 29th june - 3rd july 2009 organised by WIPO in Geneva Switzerland. The organisation has over fifty members, who are working on various experiences. Kanuri Development Association is a member of the United Nations conference of Non Governmental Organisation
Cooperation:
As part of our objective on cultural preservation and promotion we recently sponsored a research work on the archeology of Africa which waw published in the international journal of nautical archeology in 2008 and we are also having series of plans towards promotion the career culture through expressions and traditions

Year of creation: 2004
Domain(s):

- oral traditions and expressions
- performing arts
- social practices, rituals and festive events
- knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe
- traditional craftsmanship

Safeguarding measures:

- identification, documentation, research (including inventory-making)
- preservation, protection
- promotion, enhancement
- transmission, (non-)formal education
- revitalization

Main countries where active:

Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone

Objectives:
The objectives of the West Africa Coalition for indigenous peoples Rights WACIPR include
1. Authentication: The NGO continually seeks and advocates that the traditional knowledge and folklore of
the over one hundred and forty - seven indigenous communities in which it executes its mandate, are authenticated to belong to the communities.
2. Cultural Protocols: Establishing procedures including legal protection to prevent the abuse of the rich cultural heritage of the indigenous people.
3. Communal Ownership: The cultural Heritage of indigenous communities are jointly owned and does not belong to individuals and as such there must be collective agreement and consent to access
traditional knowledge and folklore.
4. Non Expropriation: The indigenous communities desire to guard against the removal of items of folklore and traditional knowledge from the places of origin. The communities see their folklore as testimony of the origin, past and spiritual tie to their progenitors. They fear that they might be destroyed and diluted.
5. Poverty alleviation: Some aspects of folklore and traditional knowledge are transformed into arts and
perfonnances which are marketed to alleviate4 poverty in the indigenous communities. Hence there is need to guard against infringement on copyright.
Activities:
The West Africa Coalition for Indigenous peoples' Rights WACIPR has recently been involved in the following activities-
1. Preservation of languages facing danger of possible extinction in many indigenous communities in Nigeria and Sierra Leone
2. Compilation of Traditional Pharmacopoeia based on traditional knowledge
3. Establishment of local orchaestra and conservatoire to preserve the cherished ancient music and dances steps of the indigenous communities.
4. Documentation and staging the age-long festivals of the indigenous peoples which are their renowned cultural heritage
5. Lobbying for legislative protection of the cultural heritage of indigenous communities based.

WACIPR is a coalition of indigenous groups and people with many affiliating communities with the aim of promoting their cultural and social well-being. Its membership spreads across Nigeria, Sierra-Leone and Liberia. The NGO has been well represented in many local, national and international floras including the Working Group on Indigenous Populations the United Nations permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues UNPFII.

Membership is open to all indigenous communities and people who often bring in their vast experiences in the preservation propagation and transmission of intangible cultural heritage.

Members and personnel of the disorganization has attended several trainings and workshops/seminars in-situ and ex-situ. The members include Historians, Anthropologists, Musicologists Archaeologists, Linguists, Theatre Artists Volunteer Researchers and Documentation experts Some members are also knowledgeable in oral tradition.

Additional information:

Our indigenous peoples are truly traditional who strongly and jealously maintain their oral folklore which they see as expression of their cultural heritage and survival amidst the ubiquitous challenges of acculturation and assimilation from the ethnic majorities. The local dialects are constantly under the siege of mass culture that are imported and of dominant language groups. To check the threat of obliteration, the West Africa Coalition for Indigenous People’s Rights WACIPR has recently taken the following steps.

1. Agitation for the inclusive and use of mother tongue as language in primary school curriculum in schools located in indigenous communities. This was part of the interventions made by WACIPR at the 5th session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues UNPFII in 2006 and at the 23rd session of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations WGIP in 2005.

2. WACIPR has also prepared a memo to the Edo state Government of Nigeria to establish community radio station(s) in indigenous people’s communities to sustain preserve and propagate their culture through its programmes.

3. WACIPR recently volunteered to provide translators, and artistes to local television and radio stations as a way of preserving the endangered dialects of the indigenous people.

4. The organization is also compiling almost forgotten words in some indigenous dialects for future generations.

5.WACIPR has a vast archives of old indigenous folk songs, visuals of festival dance steps, recitals etc. It stages cultural festival competitions among indigenous communities every three years. The last festival competition was held in 2008. The event is an occasion the participating communities look forward to with enthusiasm.

Safeguarding Traditional Pharmacopoeia
The organisation has been able to bring trado-medical health providers to agree to release information on ancient traditional knowledge on the use of curative plants. The knowledge was passed to them informally by their forebears and hither to kept secret in the respective families, is now being documented to preserve it from the threat of going into oblivion. The vast knowledge of the curative vascular plants which have been identified is systematically classified.

WACIPR is in the process of botanical propagation of the vascular plants to safeguard sustainable use for the future generations.
Cooperation:
WACIPR as a community - based organisation represent the interest of the over one hundred and forty-seven communities who expect it to advocate their cultural rights, lobby for legislative protection of their cultural heritage.

The NGO in collaboration with the indigenous communities have set up customs repositories in various settlements and villages. All transactions with people andorganisations on behalf of the indigenous communities are carried out on Mutually Agreed Terms approved by the authorities of the communities. For example, the NGO made a statement on behalf of the communities atz the fifth session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on indigenous Issues in 2005, in New York.

Several exhibitions of Traditional Cultural Expressions have been organised to display the cultural heritage of the indigenous communities and peoples through the active participation of artists and practitioners.