By Mustapha Yauri
The Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria, has inaugurated “Internationalisation Project” to enhance its collaboration with foreign partners to promote the university’s distance learning degree programmes across the United Kingdom and other European countries.
Malam Auwalu Umar, the Director of Public Affairs of the institution, confirmed this in a statement issued on Wednesday in Zaria.
Umar said the inauguration followed a feat recorded early this year when the university’s Distance Learning Centre (DLC) partnered stakeholders in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to attract eligible candidates for its e-learning academic programmes.
According to him, the project was recently launched in London, where officials of the university led by the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Kabiru Bala, held series of high-level meetings with UK strategic partners at the Nigeria High Commission, London.
“The launch was on the strength of approval granted the university by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to use all Nigerian Embassies and Mission offices around the world as information and resource centres,’’ he said.
He said the inauguration of the project would enable ABU’s DLC to attract foreign students and qualified Nigerians in the Diaspora.
He added that the project would seek to attract expatriates as online teachers, e-tutors, partnerships and collaborations on digital pedagogy and research.
The statement quoted Bala as saying that the new normal heralded by the COVID-19 had continued to push institutions to adapt to the fast-changing educational environment.
Bala stressed that the ABU DLC, which was recently rated as the best in Nigeria by the National Universities Commission (NUC) on account of its quality assurance, remained the right vehicle to drive the initiative.
The vice-chancellor, who described the project as a “huge success”, expressed gratitude to the Nigeria High Commission for all the support, including facilitation of the institution’s Distance Learning Centre Open Day in London. (NAN)
