Contextualising Historical and Cultural Identities with Exhibitions of the New National Museum in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Main Article Content

Kwang-Su Kim

Abstract

A new National Museum of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MNRDC) was established as a cultural Official Development Assistant (ODA) project by the Korean government. It opened on 23 November 2019 in Kinshasa. The objectives of the new museum are to promote the history and culture of various ethnic groups, protect heritage and exhibit cultural diversity in order to unify the people and the nation, and educate the public about the DRC history and culture. However, the exhibitions do not meet the objectives of the National Museum nor do they contextualise the history and cultural identity of the DRC. In order for the MNRDC to function as a national museum or a central national museum, its exhibition must be reconstructed in such a way that meets its purposes while historical artefacts accurately representing the DRC’s history must be displayed.

Article Details

How to Cite
Kim, K.-S. (2020). Contextualising Historical and Cultural Identities with Exhibitions of the New National Museum in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Modern Africa: Politics, History and Society, 8(2), 25–59. https://doi.org/10.26806/modafr.v8i2.328
Section
Articles
Author Biography

Kwang-Su Kim, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Institute of African Studies, South Korea

He is a Humanities Korea professor at the Institute of African Studies (IAS), Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (HUFS), South Korea. He received his MA and PhD degrees in history at North-West University in South Africa. Focusing on Afrocentrism as the new paradigm of African Studies, his current research contextualises historical and cultural identities with exhibitions of the New National Museum in the Democratic Republic of Congo. E-mail: afrikaans@hanmail.net.