‎‎By JUMOKE OLAITAN

Education stakeholders have urged the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, to retract her remarks on the accreditation of Open and Distance Learning (ODL) universities in Nigeria, describing the comments as misleading.

The call is contained In a statement co-signed by Jerry Ini and Dr Yusuf Maso on behalf of the Concerned Education Stakeholders and made available to newsmen on Saturday in Abuja.

‎They said the Minister’s remarks in a recent interview with the online platform DCL English had caused anxiety among stakeholders.

According to the statement, the minister during the interview said that only the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) was accredited to offer university degrees through the open and online learning mode.

‎They described the claim as inaccurate, saying Nigeria had seven Federal Government-approved Open Universities licensed by the National Universities Commission (NUC), as well as 34 approved Distance Learning Centres in conventional universities.

‎According to them, these institutions are authorised to offer recognised academic programmes through Open, Distance and Online Learning in line with regulatory standards.

“We are particularly concerned by the Minister’s assertion that only the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) is approved to offer university degrees through the open and online learning mode in Nigeria.

“This statement is factually incorrect.

“Nigeria currently has seven fully licensed Open Universities, all duly approved by the federal government through the National Universities Commission (NUC), in addition to 34 approved Distance Learning Centres operating within conventional universities.

“These institutions are authorised to deliver recognised academic programmes through Open, Distance, and Online Learning (ODL) in accordance with established regulatory standards.”

The stakeholders noted that the current administration approved licences for two additional private Open Universities in 2025, adding to four licensed in 2023 and the National Open University of Nigeria established in 2002.

‎They said this brought the number of fully licensed Open Universities in the country to seven.

‎They said the minister’s remarks could mislead prospective students, employers and the general public while undermining the credibility of duly licensed institutions, their staff, students and graduates.

‎They further stated that several public and private universities had adopted Open, Distance and Online Learning with the approval of the NUC, which remained the statutory regulator of university education in the country.

‎The stakeholders, however, expressed concern that some approved institutions were yet to be reflected on the Federal Ministry of Education’s Education Support Services Portal, which the minister reportedly directed members of the public to consult for verification.

‎According to them, the delay in updating the portal, combined with the minister’s remarks, has created room for misinformation and unfair criticism of legally established institutions.

‎They urged the minister to publicly clarify and retract the statement to restore confidence in Nigeria’s Open and Distance Learning system.

‎They also called on the Federal Ministry of Education to update and publish a comprehensive register of all approved universities and recognised Open, Distance and Online Learning institutions.

They said that doing this would eliminate confusion and improve public access to accurate information. (NAN, but headline reworked)

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