Nigeria's stunning new Museum of West African Art (Mowaa) has found itself in the crosshairs of local power politics in the week it was supposed to - but failed - to open its doors to the public for the first time.

The six-hectare (15-acre) campus sits in the heart of Benin City, capital of the southern state of Edo - and includes an archaeological dig and buildings designed by high-profile British-Ghanaian architect Sir David Adjaye, best known for the National Museum of African American History and Culture that opened in Washington in 2016.

It has been five years in the making - and is envisioned to celebrate both the past and the present in the region famous for the Benin Bronzes, artworks looted from the city's royal palace by British soldiers in the 19th Century.

It is impressive - and ahead of the planned opening, Mowaa was buzzing with staff determined to prove it is a place that can rival established museums and galleries in the West.

Inside conservators carefully unwrapped artworks from protective packaging, inspecting each piece and taking meticulous records before positioning them on walls and plinths.

Technicians fine-tuned climate control systems. In the materials science laboratory, officers calibrated equipment meant to preserve centuries-old artefacts.

The project has been the brainchild of businessman Phillip Ihenacho - now Mowaa's executive director.

"I want us to have a significant economic impact on communities around here," he told the BBC, adding that he hoped to make Benin City "a cultural destination".

Mowaa, a non-profit Nigerian institution, sees itself creating more than 30,000 direct and indirect jobs and contributing more than $80m (£60m) annually to the regional creative economy through partnerships and programming.

It has taken $25m (£19m) to get here - money raised from various donors, including the French and German governments, the British Museum and the Edo state government.

But now the local government has pulled the rug from under it - revoking the use of the land on which the museum was built.

An Edo state spokesperson told the BBC this was because in the original paperwork it had called itself Edo Museum of West African Art - and it had since dropped "Edo" from its name.

This announcement followed protests on Sunday, when people stormed the campus demanding it be called the Benin Royal Museum.

A rowdy group insulted foreign guests at the museum ahead of the opening - forcing them to be hurried away under police escort.

President Bola Tinubu has even stepped in to try and resolve the tensions, setting up a high-level........

© BBC