THE Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria has opened talks with National Teachers Institute, NTI, with a view to establishing a distance learning centre in the university.   A three-man delegation team led by the ABU Dean of Postgraduate School and the Acting Director of the university’s Distance Learning Centre, Prof Adebayo Joshua, met with the management of the NTI in Kaduna on Monday, to discuss the modalities for the centre.

Prof. Joshua disclosed that the DL programme had become imperative in view of the large number of applicants seeking admission into the varsity’s regular programmes.  He said that the students’ intake per session stood at between 2,500 and 5,000 and that the bulk of applicants could not be accommodated due to paucity of facilities.  “We have quite a number of applicants that come to do their post-graduate programmes in ABU but we do not have the capacity to accommodate everybody”.

The Dean said that the ABU decided to approach the NTI for assistance in recognition of its long-standing experience in distance learning and the need to provide more students the opportunity to undertake post-graduate studies in the university. The Director-General Dr Aminu Ladan Sharehu, welcomed the collaboration between the ABU and the NTI as requested by the university, as according to him, he was confident that it would mutually beneficial to both organisations.

The national institute is currently one of the most reputable distance learning institutes in the world, dedicated to teacher education, offering Post-Graduate Diploma, National Certificate in  NCE and Advance Diploma programmes in various fields, as well as, the conduct of various capacity building programmes for in-service teachers.