The decision, last week, by the Ebonyi State Government to donate its former state secretariat to the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) as the permanent site of the university’s Ebonyi Study Centre is a commendable gesture that deserves recognition. It is not merely a donation of public property; it is an investment in education, human capital development and the future of the people of the state.
Governor Francis Nwifuru’s administration has demonstrated commendable foresight by making available a facility that offers NOUN the space and opportunity to expand its operations in Ebonyi State. The governor’s explanation that the former secretariat was chosen because it provides ample room for expansion and is befitting of the status of a university is particularly encouraging.
NOUN occupies a unique position in Nigeria’s education system. Through its open and distance learning model, the university has brought higher education closer to thousands of Nigerians who, for various reasons, may be unable to pursue conventional university education. Its study centres have become important access points for students, workers and other members of society seeking to improve their qualifications and skills.
It is therefore gratifying that the Ebonyi State Government recognises the university’s contribution to education and human capital development. The donation of the former secretariat should strengthen NOUN’s capacity to serve the people of the state and, more importantly, create room for the expansion of academic and support services.
There is, however, another dimension to the development that makes it particularly significant. NOUN has, for the first time, entrusted its leadership to a son of Ebonyi State and, more broadly, to a Vice-Chancellor from the South-East geopolitical zone, in the person of Professor Uduma Oji Uduma. The appointment is itself a significant honour to the state and the region. Professor Uduma’s connection with Ebonyi and NOUN makes the development even more remarkable. Before becoming Vice-Chancellor, he served as Director of the Abakaliki Study Centre and subsequently as a Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the university. His appointment therefore represents not only recognition of competence and experience but also a homecoming of sorts.
It is against this background that Governor Nwifuru’s statement about the “honour” NOUN has done to the state should be viewed. The relationship between the university and Ebonyi has evidently come full circle: a university that has produced and nurtured an academic leader from the state is now receiving a substantial institutional commitment from the state government. The governor’s pledge to further partner with NOUN, including through constituency projects, is equally welcome. Such collaboration should be sustained beyond the present administration.
The donation of the former secretariat is, ultimately, a donation to the people. Ebonyi has shown that government property can be deployed in ways that yield enduring public value.
Ebonyi is, however, not alone in demonstrating such commitment. A few other state governments and individuals have similarly recognised the university’s role in widening access to higher education. In 2017, the Akwa Ibom State Government under Governor Udom Emmanuel donated an ultra-modern facility at Udo Udoma Avenue, Uyo, to NOUN as the permanent site of its study centre. The university subsequently designated Uyo as its operational hub for the South-South region.
In Katsina State, the administration of Governor Aminu Bello Masari built and donated the Masari Study Centre in Masari, Kafur Local Government Area, to NOUN. Commissioned in 2018, the centre was established to expand access to university education for people in the area and neighbouring communities.
There is also the remarkable intervention of the current Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau I. Jibrin. In 2021, he sponsored the construction and furnishing of 13 NOUN study centres across the 13 local government areas of the Kano North Senatorial District. The centres were complemented by utility vehicles, while a mega science laboratory was also provided at the Kano Study Centre.
These examples, with a few others not mentioned here, demonstrate what can be achieved when governments and individuals see education infrastructure not merely as expenditure but as an investment in people. They also provide a model for other states and public-spirited Nigerians.
Ebonyi, with its recent gesture, has therefore set another commendable example. It deserves our applause for turning existing public asset into an enduring educational investment. Other state governments and individuals, including members of the National Assembly, philanthropists, foundations, and town associations, should take a cue from it and support institutions that are expanding access to quality education.
NOUN, on its part, is known for its commitment to ensure that any such confidence reposed in it translates into stronger, better-equipped and more accessible study centres. Those partnerships are a win not only for Ebonyi, other states and individuals, but also a win for NOUN and, most importantly, a win for education in Nigeria.
-Dr. Sheme is a former Director of Media and Publicity, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN)
(The Whistler)