The president of Benin Republic , Patrice Talon has established a committee to work and improve the image of Vodun religion worldwide
“ The project is international , it will clear the negative image tagged along vodum religion in diaspora . It is to rebrand the religion in Africa and diaspora “ Says Prof. Omidire .
Ancestrals gathered that President Patrice Talon of Benin Republic is fully committed to a global campaign aimed at rebranding the Vodun culture in all its multiple dimensions through the MIV project.
The MIV stands for Musée international du Vodun, i.e. International Vodun Museum, slated to open its doors in the country’s capital, Porto-Novo by 2025.
The Beninese presidency, through its National Agency for the Promotion of Tourism and Culture (ANPT) has engaged a crop of intellectuals and experts in Museology, History, Arts and Culture to undertake a series of reconnoiteering missions in search of the Vodun essence in the Atlantic World, covering countries as diverse as Brazil, Cuba, Haiti, USA and the heart of Europe where the great works of art of the Vodun tradition have found new abodes through the agency of private and public colonial collectors.
Currently, a section of the Beninese presidency cultural envoys led by Nigerian professor of Afro-Latin-American Studies, Professor Félix Ayoh’OMIDIRE, and headed by the Caribbean-born Ms. Coline Toumson-Venite, Special Adviser to the Presidency on Arts and Culture, are touring Brazil in quest of the Soul of Vodun in the heartland of Brazilian ageless Candomblé traditions. The CM MIV team will touch base with the world of Vodun in places like São Paulo, Salvador, Cachoeira and São Luiz do Maranhão, reputed for its Tambor de Minas and its legendary link to the Dahomean Royal traditions.
Vodum, vudu or voodoo (in fom: vodun; in French: voodoo or vodou, refers to the various branches of a religious tradition based on ancestors which has its primary roots among the Jeje-Fom people of Benin
The tradition and culture of the Jejes, Fons, Minas, Fantes and Ashanti slaves gave rise to the religion in Brazil . It is a national religion in Benin with more than 7 million adherents worldwide
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