Advancing Research Through DataCite’s Global Access Fund: Eko-Konnect Research and Education Initiative

With support from DataCite’s Global Access Fund (GAF) in 2024, Eko-Konnect Research and Education Initiative launched a pilot project aimed at enhancing the digital preservation of Nigerian cultural artefacts and expanding the use of persistent identifiers (PIDs) in the country’s research and heritage sectors. The project focused on digitizing collections from museums under the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), led by the Lagos Museum as the pilot museum of about 50 museums in the country. The project led to the creation of an Open Access digital repository at lagosmuseum.ng, where cultural artefacts (physical objects) are assigned International Generic Sample Numbers - IGSN IDs using the DataCite infrastructure. The project included capacity building for museum staff in digital curation, metadata standards, repository workflows, and licensing practices (Creative Commons). The strategic objective is to promote a national policy for the digitalization of all museum-related items. This blog post shares the outcomes of the project and how it is laying the foundation for broader adoption of open infrastructure and PIDs within Nigeria’s research and cultural heritage sectors.