URHOBO HISTORICAL SOCIETY ENDOWMENT FUND
Prospectus
A. Introduction
Urhobo Historical Society (UHS) was founded in 1999 by Urhobo scholars who are resident in the United States. Their declared mission was to advance knowledge of Urhobo history and culture through periodic conferences, websites, and book publications. Whilst there is widespread acknowledgement that it has made important and unprecedented contributions in its desired goal of serving Urhobo history and culture, the scope and reach of the Society�s work has been restricted and limited by three factors: (a) Urhobo Historical Society has been built entirely on the work of volunteers. Despite its enormous slate of responsibilities, UHS has no part-time or full-time salaried employees for carrying out its demanding work. (b) Although UHS is exclusively devoted to Urhobo matters in Urhoboland in Nigeria�s western Niger delta, its services have been offered from a distance, from across the Atlantic in the United States. (c) Despite its growing reputation in Urhoboland, Urhobo Historical Society has no offices in Urhoboland.
It is on account of the above considerations that UHS�s Governing body, namely, the Editorial and Management Committee (EMC), has decided to introduce changes in the governance and responsibilities of the Society. These changes are designed to (a) transform UHS from an all-volunteer organization to a professional body that nonetheless retains its customary volunteerism; (b) establish UHS Headquarters in Urhoboland, beginning in 2014; (c) improve and expand the services that UHS has conducted in Urhobo history and culture in the past fourteen years; and (d), in future years and decades, extend the responsibilities and functions of UHS beyond its current services.
It is the judgment and calculation of EMC that such expansion and transformation of Urhobo Historical Society will best be accomplished through the instrument of an endowment whose yields will afford the Society funds necessary to carry out its new expanded responsibilities and functions. The demand for the services of Urhobo Historical Society is strong. We believe that a well-organized UHS Endowment Fund will enable Urhobo Historical Society to cope with such demand and probably serve as a model for the rise of other historical societies that will serve the historical and cultural needs of Nigeria�s numerous ethnic nationalities.
It is noteworthy that with an area of about 5,000 square kilometers and a population of over two million people, Urhobo is the largest ethnic nationality in Nigeria�s Western Niger Delta. Significantly, Urhobo and Benin rank as the most dominant fragments in the Edoid complex of cultures and language groups (in Edo State, Delta State, and Rivers State). With respect to Nigerian ethnic population sizes, Urhobo (along with Kanuri, Tiv, Fulani, and Ibibio) lies in the second order of ethnic nationalities in Nigeria -- following the first order of Hausa, Yoruba, and Igbo. Therefore, the subject area of Urhobo history and culture, in which Urhobo Historical Society has established its scholarly focus, is significant.
B. Background Information on UHS�s Past and Recent Activities
Since its founding in 1999, Urhobo Historical Society has engaged in three broad areas of activities: (a) UHS�s Website http://www.waado.org/Contents.html; (b) Annual Conferences held in the US (2 in number), UK (2), and Urhoboland (4); and (c) book publications on Urhobo history and culture. In so doing, UHS�s current activities have included studying and analyzing Urhobo�s history, culture and its relationships with its ethnic neighbors as well as the environmental problems of the fragile Niger Delta region of Nigeria in which Urhobo is entirely implicated. Thus, whilst we have focused in our studies and analyses on Urhobo history and culture, we have treated Western Niger Delta as well as the larger Niger Delta as the context of our engagement with Urhoboland.
We will expand on these three major areas of UHS�s past and recent activities, as follows:
Website of Urhobo Historical Society www.waado.org
Initiated and edited by Professor Peter Ekeh from its inception in 1999, the Website of Urhobo Historical Society www.waado.org has emerged as a premier and leading ethnic internet resource on any African ethnic nationality. It covers a good array of Urhobo culture, history and geography. It has several seminal essays that are widely cited in Urhobo studies and are widely employed in every-day Urhobo living. Three examples will illustrate the usefulness of the resources of the UHS Website:
(i) Aruegodore Oyiborhoro�s essay �Urhobo Names and Their Meanings� (http://www.waado.org/urhoboculture/Names/UrhoboNames_Oyibo.htm) has an exhaustive roster of Urhobo names together with their abbreviations and meanings. Thousands of young Urhobo parents have used this roster in selecting names for their new-born babies.
(ii) Professor Albert Aweto�s essay, �Outline Geography of Urhoboland� (http://www.waado.org/geography/UrhoboGeography-Aweto.htm), similarly offers abundant sources from which many scholars engaged in Urhobo studies have drawn material and inspiration.
(iii) A third strong example of an essay from the pages of Website of Urhobo Historical Society is Onoawarie Edevbie�s �A Text of Isoko-Urhobo Traditional Marriage in the Diaspora� (http://www.waado.org/urhoboculture/marriage_family/edevbie_marriage.html). This document has been used by hundreds of families for marriage ceremonies in the Urhobo Diaspora.
Annual Conferences of Urhobo Historical Society
Annual Conferences have been a main vehicle of Urhobo Historical Society in its first fourteen years. Its first two conferences were held in North America in 2000 and 2001. They were then moved to, and held, in the United Kingdom in 2002 and 2003. Due to the substantive agenda and considerable successes of these earlier annual conferences of Urhobo Historical Society, there was considerable pressure to move these events to Urhoboland.
The first Annual Conference of the Society in Urhoboland was held in 2004. Since then three more Conferences were held in Urhoboland in 2005, 2006, and 2009. A fifth Conference of the Society in Urhoboland is scheduled for November 2013. All of these Conferences in Urhoboland have been huge events. They include Thanksgiving Ceremonies held in chosen Urhobo towns. (Please see http://www.waado.org/urhobo_kinsfolk/archive/conferences/ConferencesHomePage.html for a list of Conferences of Urhobo Historical Society.) In 2006, UHS produced a comprehensive Historical Almanac of the Urhobo people that was very well received. In that year we also helped to launch Perkins Foss�s Where Gods and Mortals Meet: Continuity and Renewal in Urhobo Art.
Despite the high demand for the events of UHS Conferences, the challenges of holding these annual conferences are formidable. This is largely so because they have been organized from afar, in North America, although they are held in Urhoboland. The result is that there have been gaps in these annual gatherings.
UHS�s Book Publications
A major focus of UHS�s volunteer activities has been the publication of a series of books on Urhobo history and culture. All of them have been well received both in the scholarly sphere and among the Urhobo people. Four of these books have been published. A fifth book has been printed and awaits publication in November 2013, on the occasion of the forthcoming UHS Conference. These UHS books are distributed from the United Kingdom by African Books Collective (please see http://www.africanbookscollective.com/publishers/urhobo-historical-society).
UHS�s books are listed in monograph series and are as follows (also see: http://waado.org/uhs_books_publications/uhs_books.html).
Warri City & British Colonial Rule in Western Niger Delta, edited by Peter P. Ekeh. Lagos, Nigeria: Urhobo Historical Society, 2004.
Studies in Urhobo Culture, edited by Peter P. Ekeh. Lagos, Nigeria: Urhobo Historical Society, 2005.
History of the Urhobo People of Niger Delta, edited by Peter P. Ekeh. Lagos, Nigeria: Urhobo Historical Society, 2006 & 2007.
T. E. A. Salubi: Witness to British Colonial Rule in Urhoboland & Nigeria, edited by Peter P. Ekeh. Lagos, Nigeria: Urhobo Historical Society, 2008.
Olomu and Development of Urhoboland & Western Niger Delta, edited by Peter P. Ekeh, Onoawarie Edevbie, and Peter Ishaka. Lagos, Nigeria: Urhobo Historical Society, 2013.
C. The Way Forward for Urhobo Historical Society
The achievements listed above were wrought by Urhobo Historical Society from afar in North America. As in the past, the Society acknowledges, with enormous thanks, the help it received from patriotic Urhobo leaders in making these achievements from such great distance. Help from three leaders in particular is worth citing. First, Chief David Dafinone attended our first Conference in North America in 2000 and gave a huge amount of encouragement on the type of service we had embarked upon. He also gave us financial help. Second, Chief Johnson Barovbe has been with the Society since 2002 when we held our third Conference in the United Kingdom. He was key to persuading UHS to move its Conferences and other activities to Urhoboland in 2004. Third, Olorogun Moses Taiga has emerged as the major sponsor of UHS activities in Nigeria and Urhoboland. This is particularly so with respect to our Conferences and book publications in which Olorogun Taiga has generously supported the Society. We thank all these leaders and many others who have helped our work at home.
The Editorial and Management Committee (EMC), governing body of UHS, is convinced that with the amount of goodwill and support from such leaders, the activities of the Society can now be moved to Urhoboland from where they will be strengthened and expanded. Moreover, EMC is committed to ensuring that the valuable work and mission of Urhobo Historical Society will be carried forward into the Urhobo future by another generation of Urhobo men and women, who will be recruited, trained and inspired by the founders of the Society working from its Headquarters in Urhoboland. EMC is particularly mindful that two of its leaders -- Peter Ekeh and Onoawarie Edevbie -- have now retired from their employment in the United States and will be available for directing the affairs of the Society in Urhoboland.
Establishing UHS Headquarters in Urhoboland
A first major step in the realignment of UHS�s activities for the future is establishing a firm foothold from which its affairs will be directed in Urhoboland. EMC has obtained/leased an expansive building for its Headquarters in Okpara Inland in Ethiope East Local Government Area, Urhoboland, for its operations. UHS�s books are already stored in the rooms of the new Headquarters. The premises occupy a space of over 20,000 square feet and are surrounded by a perimeter wall. There is good parking space.
The property has space for the following facilities: (a) a reception room; (b) a conference room; (c) a lecture/seminar room; (d) a library; (e) 7 offices (each with its own toilet facility); and (f) a long and wide internal corridor which will serve as a photo gallery for displaying portraits of historic Urhobo personalities.
In order to be open for business, the new UHS Headquarters will require essential furniture and office equipment. We will need: (a) book shelves for storing UHS�s books now stored in areas of the Headquarters as well as UHS�s future publications and documents & books that the Society will acquire; (b) tables, desks, and chairs for the lecture/seminar room, reception room, conference room, and library as well as individual offices; and (c) file cabinets for storing documents acquired by UHS. In addition to such furniture, we will need: (d) several computers, printers, scanners, copiers and other office equipment; (e) equipment for generating off-grid electricity through the installation of solar panels, inverters, and batteries; and (f) a project vehicle for adequate transportation.
With the expansion of UHS operations in Urhoboland, EMC anticipates that UHS will acquire larger grounds for developing more specialized divisions for its activities in larger and more permanent Headquarters in Urhoboland.
Personnel Needs
There are also basic needs in the sphere of personnel that are requirements for launching UHS�s operations from its new Headquarters in Urhoboland. They are as follows:
(a) A Chief Executive Officer (CEO), who shall direct the affairs of UHS and shall report directly to EMC and the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund on the operations and activities of the Society.
(b) An Operations Manager who will coordinate the affairs of the Headquarters.
(c) A Librarian.
(d) Computer analysts.
(e) A Photographer/Videographer.
(f) A grounds keeper/Cleaner.
(g) A security man.
(h) A driver.
(i) Research Interns (graduate and undergraduate final year students) who will assist in conducting studies, interviews and data collection.
Cost Estimates for Establishing Headquarters (2014)
We calculate that if the enabling funds are available, the
Headquarters will be open for business in early 2014. These funds will
have to be raised upfront for the initial expenses of (a) furnishing
the headquarters, (b) securing equipment and a motor vehicle, and (c)
hiring staff for the initial operation of UHS from its new
Headquarters in its first year of operations in Urhoboland. We
estimate that we will need up to twenty million naira
(N20,000,000) for this purpose.
D. Future UHS Activities Directed from Headquarters in Urhoboland
With the changes and reorganization of UHS�s affairs outlined above, UHS intends to strengthen its current activities and operations and embark on new ones, as follows:
Strengthening UHS�s Customary Activities
For its first fourteen years of operations, Urhobo Historical Society has carried on volunteer � mostly part-time � activities touching three areas. With new headquarters and full-time salaried staff, it is the plan of UHS to strengthen and expand these customary activities in ways that will serve Urhobo history and culture quite well and that will endure into the Urhobo future. These three areas of customary activities that will thus be expanded are as follows:
(a) Website of Urhobo Historical Society www.waado.org. While retaining the contents of what is currently available in UHS�s Website, we intend to modernize the Website. Building on its old reputation, it is hoped that there will be daily addition to its pages, making it a veritable Urhobo resource. Such an expansion will serve not just the causes of Urhobo history and culture, but also the wider contexts of Western Niger Delta, Niger Delta, and Nigeria.
(b) Annual Conferences. Annual Conferences have been a major plank of operations of UHS that have assumed extraordinary importance in Urhobo affairs. They have grown complex, requiring a great deal of organizational time and prowess. With new headquarters in Urhoboland and full-time staff, UHS hopes to be able to strengthen this important tradition that is craved by the Urhobo people.
(c) Book publications. The authorship of UHS�s books has so far been severely restricted. With the movement of UHS to Urhoboland, we are hopeful that new and younger authors will join the ranks of Urhobo Historical Society to produce books at a faster rate, at least one monograph per year.
New and Expanded UHS�s Activities and Operations
Beyond the expansion of UHS�s customary activities, the transformation of Urhobo Historical Society in a new setting of its Headquarters in Urhoboland will entail new projects that will enrich its agenda of operations. We will list some of the anticipated projects as follows:
Collection of Colonial Records
The seven to eight decades of British Colonial Rule in Urhoboland and Western Niger Delta, spanning 1880s-1960, were extraordinarily important and relevant in the Urhobo historical experience. An incomparable number of documents on themes in Urhobo history and culture of the Colonial era exists in a way that did not exist before that period or since then. Unfortunately, many of these records are uncollected and are in danger of being lost forever. Our urgent responsibility is to collect these records, store them in electronic formats, and make them available to researchers and communities who wish to study them.
We are particularly concerned with the collection and restoration of the following categories of colonial records:
(a) Treaties between Royal Niger Company (on behalf of British Imperial Government) and Urhobo communities (1890s).
(b) British Colonial �Protection� Treaties with Urhobo and Isoko Communities (1890s).
(c) British Colonial Intelligence Reports on Urhobo and Isoko Clans ((1928-1932).
(d) Land Cases and Judgements on Land Disputes in Urhoboland and Western Niger Delta.
(e) Periodic and Occasional Reports by British Colonial Officers (i.e., Reports by Resident of Warri Province, District Officers in Urhoboland and Isoko).
Securing Individual Collections of Historic Significance for Urhobo Affairs
An important aspect of Urhobo affairs of the last 100 years is that several well-informed individuals kept historic records as part of their private collections. Unfortunately, many such records have been lost due to lack of care in the aftermath of the death of their original collectors. A harrowing example is the reported loss of the huge collection of important records by the pioneer Urhobo politician Chief G. Ohwotemu Oweh of Avwraka. Urhobo Historical Society will seek out such individual collections and store them physically and electronically for posterity in the archives of UHS.
There are at least two other known individual collections by Urhobo leaders which UHS intends to pursue. These deserve individual mention:
(a) Collections of Chief T. E. A. Salubi of Ovu. The late Chief T. E. A. Salubi had a huge collection of papers that include his memoirs, colonial records, and post-colonial records on Urhobo history and culture. His heir, Dr. T. A. Salubi, has custody of his father�s papers. Professor Peter Ekeh edited a volume on the late Chief T. E. A. Salubi�s biography. But there is much more in the Salubi Collections for many other volumes. We intend to approach Dr. Salubi to permit UHS to electronically store the collections in our computers at the UHS Headquarters and honour Chief Salubi by thus memorializing his collections.
(b) Collection of Chief Daniel Obiomah of Warri. Chief Daniel Obiomah has a large and varied collection of papers from British colonial times and in post-colonial times, particularly on the history of Warri. He has published many books from his collections. UHS intends to approach the Chief and his family for arrangements to acquire his collection of papers in ways that will honour him and his good works.
We hope to pursue other collections as we learn of them in the years ahead.
Records of Churches and Schools in Urhoboland and Isoko
Much social change came to Urhoboland in the 20th century through Christian Churches and Schools. The records of these institutions do provide important clues to Urhobo history and culture. Their records are important for understanding the circumstances of Urhobo history and culture in the last 100 years. It was the Church Missions that brought hospitals to several Urhobo towns (e.g. Eku and Okpara Inland).
Urhobo Historical Society intends to work with the Churches and schools (especially secondary schools and teacher training schools such as Urhobo College, Government College, Ughelli, and St. Peter Claver�s College, Aghalokpe) in the hope that we will be able to secure and digitize their records for electronic storage.
Geography and Environment of Urhoboland
Urhobo Historical Society has always been interested and involved in studies of Urhobo geography and environment. Indeed, some of the best maps of Urhoboland are in the Website of Urhobo Historical Society (see http://www.waado.org/Geography/maps/homepage.html) � thanks to the dedication and volunteerism of Professor Francis Odemerho, a prominent member of UHS�s Editorial and Management Committee. We intend to produce more professional maps and photo-books of Urhobo subcultures, local government areas, towns and villages -- such as the following map of Olomu: http://www.waado.org/CulturalUnits/olomu/map.html. In particular, we hope to focus considerable attention on the past histories and current neglect of rivers, lakes, and streams in Urhoboland.
Videotaping and Recording of Contemporary Urhobo Culture
Elements and varieties of contemporary Urhobo culture � songs, dances, masquerades, festivals, etc. � are robust. UHS will not only seek to collect records of these but also actively videotape and record the works of living artists. In addition, UHS will embark on interviewing prominent Urhobo leaders, especially those who are ageing, and record their life experiences and perspectives of Urhobo history and changes in Urhoboland.
Monthly Seminars
We intend to introduce monthly Seminars at UHS�s new Headquarters on topics of importance to Urhobo affairs. Such topics as the Doctrine of Overlordship; Security Issues in Urhoboland; Improving Local Governance; Women Empowerment Strategies; Waterways in Past Urhobo History and Their Potential Economic Value in the Urhobo Future: these will be offered to professional groups and interested persons.
E. UHS Endowment Fund
All the above plans are plausible only if there is a steady and sustainable source of funding for their execution. UHS�s Editorial and Management Committee (EMC) believes that an Endowment Fund will provide such stability as well as a system of accountability. Its general design is that the UHS Endowment Fund will raise a sizeable sum of money. A Finance Committee of the Board of Trustees shall be responsible for overseeing the investments of the UHS Endowment Fund, which investments shall be managed by an Investment House or Company chosen by the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund will assign a portion of the yearly yield to UHS Headquarters for UHS�s yearly operations and activities. [1]
Structure and Organization of Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund
EMC has decided that a 20-Member Board of Trustees will be suitable to run the affairs of UHS Endowment Fund. The Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund will consist of the following:
(a) A Chairman[2] who shall be appointed by EMC.
(b) A total of five members of the EMC of Urhobo Historical Society who shall be ex-officio members.
(c) The Chairman and 29 other Members (for a total of 30 members) whose appointment shall be approved by EMC.
(d) The Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund will appoint its own Secretary.
Principal Functions of the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund
The work of the Board of Trustees is designed to ensure the sustainability of UHS�s mission as well as the accountability of its operations. More specifically:
(a)
The Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund will raise start-up funds
from donors for the purpose of setting up UHS Headquarters in 2014 and
for the further purpose of running UHS�s operations in the first year
from its new Headquarters in Urhoboland. EMC estimates that the costs
of furniture, providing off-grid electrical supply, computers and
other equipment as well as personnel expenses will amount to about
twenty million naira (N20,000,000.00) in the first year
(2014).
(b) The Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund will raise funds and gifts from donors for the benefit of Urhobo Historical Society�s Endowment Fund. These donors may include Urhobo philanthropists and well-wishers of UHS, oil companies and other corporations operating in the Western Niger Delta, as well as individuals and foundations that have especial interests in the advancement of Urhobo history and culture.
(c) The Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund will oversee the investment of the income from the donations (in (b) above) for the purpose of maximizing the yields from such investments.
(d) The Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund will, on annual or bi-annual basis, allocate funds for UHS�s operations as requested from UHS Headquarters and approved by EMC.
(e) The Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund will receive and review reports from UHS Headquarters on UHS operations which are funded from UHS Endowment Fund.
Scope and Nature of UHS Endowment Fund
EMC estimates that yields from an ultimate fund of two hundred
million naira (N200 million or equivalent of US$1.24 million)
will be adequate for UHS�s operations and activities in perpetuity.
The Board of Trustees will be in charge of raising and overseeing the
investment and management of these funds. EMC recommends that the pool
of donors should include Urhobo men and women who are in positions to
donate generously as well as corporations, including oil companies,
which operate in Urhoboland. The EMC urges the Board of Trustees to
extend the campaign for these donations to friends of Urhobos outside
Urhoboland as well as to companies, foundations, and civil
society.
The Board of Trustees shall have authority to oversee the investment and management of the funds raised for the UHS Endowment Fund in ways that will maximize yields for Urhobo Historical Society. The Board of Trustees may designate categories of individual and corporate donations. The Board may recommend to EMC the most effective ways of honoring donors who provide gifts and donations to UHS Endowment Fund.
Organizing Committee for Establishing the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund
EMC will need the help of a group of Urhobo patriots and friends of Urhobo Historical Society for identifying those men and women whom the EMC may invite to serve on the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund. EMC intends to include these six leaders to serve on the Board of Trustees when it is constituted. This Organizing Committee will also discuss ways of raising funds for establishing UHS Headquarters in 2014. EMC hereby invites the following to serve as Members of Organizing Committee for Establishing the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund:
(a) Olorogun Moses Taiga (Chairman) (resident in Lagos)
(b) Chief Johnson Barovbe (Lagos)
(c) Chief Simeon Ohwofa (Lagos)
(d) Dr. Ramsey O. Mowoe (Abuja)
(e) Chief Miller Uloho (Ughelli)
(f) Dr. Peter Obakponovwe (Okpara Inland)
In addition to these leaders, EMC invites Mr. Atete Ighoyivwi (Lagos) to serve as this Organizing Committee�s Secretary.
Suggested Timeline for Establishing UHS Endowment Fund
(a) September�November 2013: Meetings of Organizing Committee for Establishing the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund. EMC invites those nominated by the Organizing Committee to become Members of Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund.
(b) November 2013: Inauguration of Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund.
(c) January 2014: Headquarters of Urhobo Historical Society opens at Okpara Inland, Urhoboland.
F. Honoring Donors to UHS Endowment Fund
From its beginning, Urhobo Historical Society has formed a tradition of giving full acknowledgment of those who assist the Society in advancing its goal of serving Urhobo history and culture. In instances where such assistance has been particularly remarkable, the Society has awarded �UHS Service Awards� to deserving individuals. The Society has also instituted �Urhobo Service Awards� that are named for historic Urhobo personalities -- namely, Chief Mukoro Mowoe, Omohwovo Okoro, M. G. Ejaife, Agbotanren Udih, Adogbeji Salubi, Omokomoko Osokpa & Ogute Otan, M. O. Ighrakpata, and David Dafinone & Michael Ibru. These Urhobo Service Awards have been presented at UHS Annual Conferences to contemporary Urhobo personalities who have been judged to have benefited Urhobo nation by their service (see, e.g., http://www.waado.org/HistoricalAlmanacs/Awards/2009/home.html).
EMC has decided to extend such tradition to those who will make contributions to the coffers of UHS Endowment Fund. It is EMC�s plan that every donor to UHS Endowment Fund shall be acknowledged and honored by Urhobo Historical Society in a befitting manner. Where donations are significant and unique, the Board of UHS Endowment Fund may recommend that their donors should be especially honored by having structures, projects, operations, or publications of Urhobo Historical Society named for these distinguished and generous donors.
Special Categories of Donors to UHS Endowment Fund
In pursuit of our policy of acknowledging all financial contributions to UHS Endowment Fund, EMC designates six distinct levels of donors who shall be publicly thanked for their generosity. These categories are as follows:
(a) Benefactor of UHS: Any person or corporation (or company) that donates between N10m and N15m (or its equivalent in a foreign currency) to UHS Endowment Fund shall be graded a benefactor of Urhobo Historical Society, deserving of an individual Gold Plaque to be displayed at UHS Headquarters, Certificate of Recognition, publication in UHS�s Websites, and entry into Roster of Donors at UHS Headquarters.
(b) Sponsor of UHS: Any person or corporation (or company) that donates between N5m and N10m (or its equivalent in a foreign currency) to UHS Endowment Fund shall be graded a sponsor of Urhobo Historical Society, deserving of an individual Silver Plaque to be displayed at UHS Headquarters, Certificate of Recognition, publication in UHS�s Websites, and entry into Roster of Donors at UHS Headquarters.
(c) Sustainer of UHS: Any person or corporation (or company) that donates between N1m and N5m (or its equivalent in a foreign currency) to UHS Endowment Fund shall be graded a sustainer of Urhobo Historical Society, deserving of a listing on a Plaque to be displayed at UHS Headquarters, Certificate of Recognition, publication in UHS�s Websites, and entry into Roster of Donors at UHS Headquarters.
(d) Supporter of UHS: Any person or corporation (or company) that donates between N500,000 and N1m (or their equivalent in a foreign currency) to UHS Endowment Fund shall be graded a supporter of Urhobo Historical Society, deserving of a listing on a unique Plaque of similar donors to be displayed at UHS Headquarters, Certificate of Recognition, publication in UHS�s Websites, and entry into Roster of Donors at UHS Headquarters.
(e) Partner of UHS: Any person or corporation (or company) that donates between N100,000 and N500,000 (or its equivalent in a foreign currency) to UHS Endowment Fund shall be graded a partner of Urhobo Historical Society, deserving of a listing on a unique Plaque of similar donors to be displayed at UHS Headquarters, Certificate of Recognition, publication in UHS�s Websites, and entry into Roster of Donors at UHS Headquarters.
(f) Friend of UHS: Any person or corporation (or company) that donates between N1000 and N100,000 (or its equivalent in a foreign currency) to UHS Endowment Fund shall be graded a friend of Urhobo Historical Society, deserving of a listing on a unique Plaque of similar donors to be displayed at UHS Headquarters, Certificate of Recognition, publication in UHS�s Websites, and entry into Roster of Donors at UHS Headquarters.
Naming Special Areas of UHS Headquarters for Major Donors
Four wings and areas of the new UHS Headquarters at Okpara Inland are deemed by EMC as worthy of special designation and naming rights for donors who make significant financial contributions to UHS Endowment Fund. They are as follows:
(a) Library. Urhobo Historical Society intends to develop a major library of publications, documents and papers on all aspects of Urhobo history and culture. It will occupy a significant area of the new UHS Headquarters. EMC would like the new library and its facilities to be named for a special and high-powered donor and contributor to UHS Endowment Fund. Any donor (whether a person or group of persons or a corporation) that provides at least N35 million naira to the Fund will have naming rights to the Library. That is, the donor person(s) or company may decide to give the Library a name of their choice, subject to the approval of both the EMC and the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund.
(b) Photo Gallery. UHS�s new Headquarters has a large internal corridor that will be used as a Photo Gallery. It will display rows of photographic portraits of Urhobo historic personalities with their biographical notations. EMC believes that this Photo Gallery will become a major cultural asset that deserves to be named for a major donor to the UHS Endowment Fund. Any donor (whether a person or group of persons or a corporation) that provides at least N25 million naira to the Fund will have naming rights to the Photo Gallery. That is, the donor person(s) or company may decide to give the Photo Gallery a name of their choice, subject to the approval of both the EMC and the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund.
(c) Lecture/Seminar Room. The new Headquarters has a Lecture/Seminar Room which will be used for giving formal lectures or for holding seminars. EMC wishes it to be named for an important donor to the UHS Endowment Fund. Any donor (whether a person or group of persons or a corporation) that provides at least N20 million naira to the Fund will have naming rights to the Photo Gallery. That is, the donor person(s) or company may decide to give the Photo Gallery a name of their choice, subject to the approval of both the EMC and the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund.
(d) Conference Room. Lastly, the new Headquarters has a good-sized Conference Room that will be used for meetings. EMC has designated it as a feature of the new Headquarters that should be named for a good donor to the UHS Endowment Fund. Any donor (whether a person or group of persons or a corporation) that provides at least N15 million naira to the Fund will have naming rights to the Conference Room. That is, the donor person(s) or company may decide to give the Conference Room a name of their choice, subject to the approval of both the EMC and the Board of Trustees of UHS Endowment Fund.
(Signed on behalf of Editorial and Management Committee of Urhobo Historical Society):
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Professor Peter P. Ekeh President |
Dr. Isaac James Mowoe Vice-President |
Engr. Onoawarie Edevbie Secretary |
September 8, 2013