Former Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola, have called for the expansion of open and distance learning as a critical solution to Nigeria’s growing demand for university education.
They made the call on Tuesday at the fifth colloquium of the Distance Learning Institute of the University of Lagos, held in Lagos, with the theme, “Reimagining the Open and Distance Learning Ecosystem: Technology, Policy & Institutional Priorities.”
Osinbajo, who chaired the colloquium, said Nigeria could not bridge its university access gap by relying predominantly on conventional campus-based education, given the growing number of young people seeking admission into tertiary institutions.
He noted that more than 2.2 million Nigerians seek admission through the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board annually, while the country’s tertiary education system had historically admitted only about a quarter of that number.
According to him, Nigeria’s projected population growth would further increase pressure on the existing university system, making it impractical to depend solely on the construction of more lecture theatres, hostels and other physical infrastructure.
