Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has reiterated that the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) is not inferior to other conventional universities in the country, stressing its pivotal role in bridging Nigeria’s educational gap.
Obasanjo made this declaration on Monday while receiving a delegation from the university during a courtesy visit and alumni award presentation at his residence.
Drawing from personal experience, Obasanjo affirmed the quality of education at NOUN, having completed his PhD at the institution.
“Despite the availability of universities, we’re still not coping; the gaps kept getting wider, which was why I said Open University is a necessity; it created more avenues and made it convenient for working-class citizens,” he said.
“Some people rose up, saying open university is inferior to non-open universities, but I was not discouraged. I said, let me go there and have a taste of what they’re saying it is inferior. Then I came in, I saw and I conquered,” he added.
The former president explained that two distinguished lecturers supervised his PhD research, which, he argued, was a testament to NOUN’s academic integrity.
“Two distinguished lecturers supervised me and supervised many other PhD students, and if they supervised me successfully, my PhD wouldn’t be inferior. So, if mine isn’t inferior and those before me are not inferior, National Open University has come to stay,” he said.
Obasanjo noted that at a point in its development, NOUN had over half a million students and continues to grow. He assured the university officials of his unwavering support for the institution’s development.
Speaking during the visit, Professor Ganiyat Adesina-Uthman, Director of the Directorate of Advancement and Linkages (DAL), described NOUN as a pan-African educational model and the largest open university on the continent.
“NOUN has been a great blessing, not just to Nigeria and Nigerians but to African countries,” she said. “The university is not just a federal university but one of its kind in Africa and the biggest on the continent.”
Adesina-Uthman highlighted NOUN’s contribution to human capital development in Nigeria and neighbouring countries. She appealed to Obasanjo for support in providing scholarships for flagship programmes and backing other institutional needs.
“We need scholarships for some of our flagship programmes, including Entrepreneurship Studies, Criminology and Security Studies, Mass Communication, Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution and Indigenous Students, too,” she said.
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Other requests presented by the DAL included the renaming of buildings after benefactors, the construction of a university hospital, a 50-room guest house, and a 1,000-capacity auditorium.
She also called for community support services in NOUN’s host areas, including the donation of educational consumables, provision of clean water and sanitation, and the construction of bus stop shelters.
In his remarks, Professor Wilfred Ngwuanyi, Director of the Olusegun Obasanjo Centre for Africa Study at NOUN, commended the former president for his scholarly discipline and unwavering advocacy for African self-determination.
He requested Obasanjo’s support in facilitating collaboration with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for joint research and publications. He also sought Obasanjo’s influence in establishing a Chinese cultural centre at the university through cooperation with the Chinese embassy.
The visit underscored the former president’s enduring connection to NOUN and his commitment to supporting its growth as a leading institution for open and distance learning in Africa.
