NATIONAL
ARCHIVES DECREE 1992
Decree No. 30
[8th July, 1992]
THE FEDERAL MILITARY GOVERNMENT hereby
decrees as follows:
PART
III – PRESERVATION AND MANAGEMENT OF RECORDS OF
PROIVATE BODIES, INDIVIDUALS AND COMPANIES
34. Power
to inspect private records
35. Register of non-current
records, etc.
36. Responsibilities of
the owners of private archives.
37. Restrictions on disposal,
transfer or sale of private archives.
38. Exportation of private
archives prohibited.
39. Responsibilities of
Director over private archives.
40. Voluntary deposit of
private archives in the National Archives
41. Compulsory transfer
of private archives to National Archives, etc.
42. Records of banned parties
to be transferred to National Archives,
43. Acquisition of records
by gift or purchase
44. Collection of oral traditions
and oral history and register for oral traditions and
oral history.
45. Establishment of archives
by business houses or companies.
46. Compulsory transfer
of business records
 Management
of Private Records and Historical Manuscripts
Power
to inspect private records
34. The
Director shall, as far as possible cause all non-current
records and historical documents owned, held or possessed
by private bodies and individuals in Nigeria to be inspected
and surveyed and advise or cause advice to be given as
to their safe custody, preservation and care.
Register
of non-current records, etc
35. –
(1) The Director shall keep a register (in this section
referred to as “the register”) into which
shall be entered as the Director may determine, such of
the non-current records material and historical document
mentioned in section 34 of this Decree which are of value
and are not deposited in the National Archives or in a
place of deposit.
(2) Entry
into the register under subsection (1) of this section
shall be made on the basis of a declaration by the private
body or individual owning, holding or possessing the record,
material or historical documents or on the basis of investigation
conducted by the Director concerning the existence of
the record, material of historical documents.
(3) The
Director may require from any person information concerning
private non-current records, materials or historical document
owned, held or possessed by him and it shall be the duty
of such person to supply the information.
(4) No record or historical document which is less than
twenty-five years old shall be entered into the register,
unless it has, in the opinion of the Director, major historical
interest and significance and when so registered they
all assume the status of private archives.
Responsibilities
of the owners of private archives.
36. A private
body or an individual who, by whatever title, owns, holds
or possesses registered records shall:
(a) preserve
his archives in an adequate manner and with all due care
and repair and bind them as may be necessary
(b) arrange,
classify, list and describe the archives:
(c) transmit
a copy of such lists or descriptions to the Director:
(d) open
his archives for the use of the public at request under
such conditions as may be agreed with the Director
(e) make
arrangements to publish such of his archives as the Director
may require or submit such archives to the Director for
publication; and
(f) report
any losses of archives to the Director.
Restrictions
on disposal, transfer or sale of private archives.
37. –
(1) Private archives shall not be disposed of by their
owners, holders or possessors except with the written
permission of the Director.
(2) The
ownership, tenure or possession of private archives shall
not be transferred whether for payment or free of charge,
without the prior knowledge of the Director who, in the
case of sale, may exercise the right of pre-emption.
Exportation
of private archives prohibited.
38. –
(1) No person shall export or send private archives out
of Nigeria.
(2) any
person who contravenes the provisions of subsection (I)
of this section is guilty of an offence under this section
and liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding N1000
or to imprisonment for a tern not exceeding six months,
or to both such fine and imprisonment.
Responsibilities
of Director over private archives.
39. - (1)
The Director shall, as far as the resources available
to him permit, assist the owner, holder or possessor of
private archives in arranging, classifying, listing, describing,
repairing and binding his archives.
(2) The
Director shall microfilm all private archives which he
considers to be important for Nigerian history.
Voluntary
deposit of private archives in the National Archives
40. - (1)
A private body or an individual who owns, holds or possesses
archives may deposit them in the National Archives for
their better preservation.
(2) Private
archives deposited under the provisions of subsection
(1) of this section shall not be deemed to have become
public archives.
(3) The
depositor of private archives shall be free to consult
the deposited archives and to make or obtain copies of
or extracts from them free of charge.
Compulsory
transfer of private archives to National Archives, etc.
41. - (1)
The Director shall, with the approval of the Minister,
transfer for preservation in the National Archives any
private archives which in his opinion are in danger of
loss, dispersal,
deterioration or destruction.
(2) When
private archives are transferred to the National Archives
under the provisions of subsection (I) of this section
they shall assume the status of, and be managed as, public
archives.
(3) Compulsory
transfers of private archives shall be subject to the
payment of compensation.
Records
of banned parties to be transferred to National Archives,
42. All
the records of political parties and other associations
or societies which have been banned or proscribed by the
Federal Government shall be - transferred to the National
Archives by the designated or prescribed authorities within
such period or any extension of time as the National Council
of Ministers may determine.
Acquisition
of records by gift or purchase
43. The Director may receive
gifts of records and historical documents of any provenance
or purchase them with public funds provided they are of
major historical interest and significance.
Collection
of oral traditions and oral history and register for oral
traditions and oral history.
44. - (1)
The Director shall collect or assist in the collection
of oral traditions and oral history.
(2) A
register for oral traditions and oral history of various
collections in various institutes and centres shall be
maintained by the Director.
(3) It
shall be the responsibility of such institutes and centres
to ensure that the lists of their collections are forwarded
on the appropriate form to the Director on or before 31st
December of every year.
Establishment
of archives by business houses or companies.
Preservation
and Management of Company Records
45. - (1)
Every business house or company which is not Government
owned or private companies within the meaning of The Companies
and Allied Matters Act (by what name so ever
described) shall, on attaining the age of twenty-five
years, operate an archives division.
(2) Every business house or company which has been in
existence for at least twenty -five years at the commencement
of this Decree shall, not later than three years after
that date, establish its archives division on the basis
laid down in subsection (1) of this section.
(3) Nothing
in this section shall prevent –
(a) a
group of business houses or companies, whether they are
of the same or different kind, if they so desire, from
joining together to establish joint archival repositories
for the better preservation and administration of their
archives; or
(b) an
archival division from being established by any business
house or company, which, not being twenty-five years
(4) As
from the commencement of this Decree, every business house
or company shall be under obligation to make and preserve
adequate and proper documentation of its organisation,
functions, policies, procedures and transactions.
Compulsory
transfer of business records
46. - (1)
A business house or a company affected by section 45 of
this Decree and which has not established an archival
division by itself or jointly with other business houses
or companies by a date to be prescribed by the National
Council of Ministers shall transfer all their non-current
records to the National Archives.
(2) The
records transferred into the National Archives' under
subsection (1) of this section shall be deemed to be public
records under this Decree and shall be so managed.
(3) No
compensation shall be paid for the records transferred
by virtue of this section.
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