The Minister of Education, Prof Tahir Mamman, has tasked the Al-Muhibbah Open University, Kubwa, Abuja, to be innovative in their programmes in order to provide solutions to the present and future needs of the society.
Prof. Mamman, who stated this at the varsity’s maiden matriculation Friday, said they should not go into running routine programmes but should ensure that digitalization and IT are in the forefront of what they do.
“One of the focus areas of this government is qualifications that are relevant to our local community; they must be relevant while having the same quality that will make you competitive in the international arena.
“How do you become relevant within the local frontier; it is by ensuring that you have programmes that embed in them skills, which will make them readily employable or better still employees of Nigerians,” he said.
Speaking, the acting Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Chris Maiyaki, said the transformative impact of education was undeniable as it surpasses boundaries that ignite their social economy.
In her remarks, Founder and Chancellor of the varsity, and First Lady of Bauchi State, Dr Aisha Bala Mohammed, said the institution’s objective is to create opportunity for women and the less privileged to attend higher education.
She said the chance to establish an open university makes her vision more realistic.
Also, Governor of Bauchi, Sen Bala Muhammad, commended his wife’s resilience in establishing the university, saying; “she is the best in dreaming and actualising the dreams.”