UNESCO Multisectoral Regional Office in Abuja
The UNESCO Abuja Office was created in the early 1960s for the purpose of serving as a National Office. Following the UNESCO Field Network Reforms in Africa of 2011, UNESCO Abuja Office evolved to be a Multisectoral Regional Office for West Africa in 2013. It covers eight countries, namely Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo. In this region, UNESCO is present with National Offices in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, and with Antennas in Liberia, Togo and Benin. In addition, a project office has been established in 2018 in Sierra Leone and Guinea.
The Office works across all the five Major Programme Sectors of UNESCO: Education, Natural Sciences, Human and Social Sciences, Culture, and Communication and Information. It is committed to collaborating with Member States and other partners to implement a stronger and better targeted strategy to build peace, eradicate poverty and achieve inclusive sustainable development by improving the quality, equity, and relevance of education, by harnessing science, technology and innovation to boost development and build related capacities, by mobilizing the heritage and creative industries for culture and development, by promoting freedom of expression and by using ICTs for development, and by enhancing gender equality and peace and citizenship education.
Dimitri Sanga, Director
In this capacity, he leads UNESCO's work towards the coordination of international cooperation in education, natural sciences, social and human sciences, culture, communication and information. He also mobilizes the wider public so that each child and citizen has access to quality education, a basic human right and an indispensable prerequisite for sustainable development; may grow and live in a cultural environment rich in diversity and dialogue, where heritage serves as a bridge between generations and peoples; can fully benefit from scientific advances; and can enjoy full freedom of expression, the basis of democracy, development and human dignity.