A new higher education institution, American Open University Nigeria (A-Global), has launched with a mission to tackle Nigeria’s growing graduate unemployment and skills gap by replacing traditional degree-focused education with a competency-based learning model designed to prepare students for the future of work.
The university, which says it is built on more than a decade of research, believes Nigeria’s higher education system has failed to keep pace with changing labour market demands, leaving many graduates unemployed or underemployed despite holding university degrees.
Speaking on the vision behind the institution, A-Global President, Dr. David Seyi Akanbi, said the university was established to provide practical solutions to the country’s education challenges rather than simply award certificates.
“We are facing a future where automation threatens half of today’s jobs, yet our current model is still preparing students for the economy of yesterday. We needed a solution that wasn’t just a copy-paste of foreign universities, but one rooted in the specific complexities of the Nigerian and African landscape,” he said.
According to findings from a feasibility study commissioned before the university’s establishment, 95 per cent of students and 85 per cent of employers believe Nigeria’s current higher education system is not adequately preparing graduates for the demands of the 21st century.
