By Desire Emmanuel
The United States Government, through its mission in Nigeria, has awarded the sum of $400,000 as grant for the conservation of the Bilikisu Sungbo shrine in Oke Eri via Ijebu Ode, Ogun State.
Bilikisu Sungbo, fondly referred to as the Queen of Sheba in the Holy Bible, was said to have “entered the ground” in the agrarian community of Oke Eri, along the Ijebu Ode-Ibadan Road and many people used to troop to the location where a shrine has been erected in her honour.
The shrine is surrounded by fascinating stories and myths. According to local tradition, Bilikisu Sungbo was a wealthy woman who travelled extensively and possessed supernatural powers, which she used to dig ditches around villages in Ijebu-Ode. The shrine has a small open ground with no grass growing on it, said to be the spot where she was washed before she entered the ground.
In 1995, the Bilikisu Sungbo Shrine was added to the cultural category of UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognizing its historical and cultural significance.
Interestingly, the Ijebu people forbid women and dogs from visiting the spot where Bilikisu Sungbo shrine is, adding to the shrine’s mystique.
However, on Wednesday, the US Mission in Nigeria said it was giving the money as grant for the conservation of the shrine, describing it as the largest Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) grant in Nigeria and the second-largest in sub-Saharan Africa.
It wrote on its verified X handle: “The US Mission in Nigeria awarded a grant of $400,000 for the conservation of the late 14th century Sungbo Eredo Earthworks of the Yoruba Ijebu Kingdom in Nigeria. This was the largest Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) grant in Nigeria and the second-largest in sub-Saharan Africa.”
