By Emmanuel Afonne
The Governing Council of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), has approved 15 new courses for undergraduate and postgraduate programmes to give opportunities to Nigerians wishing to study in the institution.
Prof. Peter Okebukola, the Chairman, Governing Council, NOUN, said this in Abuja on Thursday while briefing newsmen.
He noted that three of the courses, International Relations, French as well as Development Studies, were approved for undergraduate programmes.
Okebukola explained that 12 of the programmes including Master of Law, Master of International Law and Diplomacy (MILD), Public Health, Economics and Mass Communication were approved for postgraduate programmes.
Others courses approved for postgraduate programmes were Cyber Security, Artificial Intelligence and Management Information System.
Okebukola said: “Council noted that University Senate has approved a whole range of new undergraduate and postgraduate academic programmes in order to provide more opportunities to thousands of Nigerians who would not have been able to study these programmes due to their individual circumstance.”
According to him, six of the programmes that have to do with Cyber Security, Artificial Intelligence and Management Information System will take place at the institution’s World Bank funded Africa Centre for Excellence in Technology Enhanced Learning (ACETEL).
The NOUN Council Chairman also said that the institution was gradually achieving its target of one million enrolment going by its current enrolment of 550,000 students.
He commended the Managements of National Universities Commission (NUC) and Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) for their support and interventions in the university which led to the increase of students’ enrolment.
“Council is happy to report that Government of Belarus has requested the permission of NOUN to hold an education fair in December 2019 due to importance of NOUN as a national nerve centre for educational dissemination and quality assurance.
”Council also approved the recommendation of Senate for the appointment of Prof. Uduma Orji Uduma of the Department of Philosophy as the new Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic).
“We also noted the election of Congregation representatives to Council of Mrs Margaret Merari and Alhaji Isa Shehu for the period specified by law.
“It is gratifying to note the increasing number of enrolment of women in NOUN; second semester registration indicated 58 per cent of those taking examination in NOUN are female.
“This is commendable as it provides women with an opportunity for gaining world-class education at their place and their pace,” Okebukola added.