The Vice-Chancellor, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Prof. Uduma Oji Uduma, has urged open and distance learning (ODL) institutions across West Africa to integrate assistive technologies into teaching, learning and learner support services.
This, according to the Vice-Chancellor, was aimed at promoting inclusive education.
He made the call on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, in Abuja, while delivering his opening address at a two-day Regional Workshop on Assistive Technologies for Differently-Abled Learners in Open and Distance Learning Institutions in West Africa, held at the university’s headquarters in Jabi, Abuja.
Represented by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Technology, Innovation and Research, Professor Christine Ofulue, the Vice-Chancellor said that expanding access to education must go beyond enrolment to ensuring that learners with disabilities participate meaningfully, learn with dignity and benefit fully from educational opportunities.
He noted that although ODL had widened access to education for people facing barriers to conventional learning, institutions needed to pay greater attention to the challenges learners with disabilities encounter throughout their academic journeys.
According to him, assistive technologies could reduce these barriers and promote independent learning.
He however stressed that technology alone could not guarantee inclusion without appropriate institutional policies, accessible learning materials and responsive learner support services.
“Our task, therefore, is not simply to explore available technologies. It is also to consider how our institutions can create a conducive environment in which these technologies will make a meaningful difference to learners’ experiences and outcomes,” he said.
Prof. Uduma highlighted NOUN’s efforts to promote inclusive education, including the adoption of a policy on learners with special needs, the establishment of a Special Needs Unit under the Directorate of Learner Support Services, and the launch of an interdisciplinary network on inclusive education during a pre-conference workshop at the university’s third ODeLAN Conference in 2024.
He acknowledged, however, that more needed to be done, describing the workshop as an opportunity for participating institutions to assess existing provisions, exchange experiences and identify practical strategies for improving support for learners with disabilities.
He urged participants to move beyond discussions and technology demonstrations by establishing clear priorities and practical approaches that could be adopted to their respective Institutional contexts.
He also commended the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) for its continued partnership in advancing open, distance and technology-enabled learning, while recognising the contributions of the Regional Training and Research Institute for Distance and Open Learning (RETRIDOL) to capacity building and professional development in the sector.
In her opening remarks, the Adviser, Higher Education, Commonwealth of Learning, Professor Jane-Frances Agbu, said that although open and distance learning had overcome several geographical barriers to education, more needed to be done to address barriers arising from inaccessible technologies, learning environments and educational practices.
She described the workshop as an important opportunity for stakeholders to examine how assistive technologies could make learning more accessible and meaningful for differently-abled learners across the West African sub-region.
Professor Agbu explained that tools such as screen readers, speech-to-text applications, captioning tools, adaptive devices, accessible digital platforms and emerging artificial intelligence applications could help learners access information, engage with learning materials and participate more independently in their educational pursuits.
She emphasised that the success of inclusive education depended on listening to learners with disabilities and involving them in designing solutions that addressed their actual needs.
“The true measure of open education is not simply how many learners we reach, but how many we enable to participate meaningfully, learn with dignity, realise their potential, and succeed,” she said.
Professor Agbu encouraged participants to use the two-day workshop to exchange institutional experiences, identify sustainable solutions, strengthen partnerships across countries and agree on concrete actions that would translate discussions into improvements in learners’ experiences.
She added that inclusion was not a favour but a responsibility and an essential measure of educational quality, equity and social justice.
Earlier, the Director of RETRIDOL, Professor Dorothy Ofoha, welcomed participants and reaffirmed the institute’s commitment to strengthening the capacity of higher education institutions in open and distance learning across West Africa.
She explained that RETRIDOL was established in 2003 through a collaboration between NOUN and the Commonwealth of Learning, with a mandate to advance open and distance learning through training, research and regional cooperation.
Professor Ofoha noted that the institute had supported capacity-building and collaborative initiatives across countries including Cameroon, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Togo.
She said that access to education would remain incomplete if learners with disabilities could not fully engage with learning materials, digital platforms, communication channels and assessment activities.
According to her, the workshop provided a platform for participants to share experiences, examine existing practices and explore how assistive technologies could be made more available and effectively integrated into teaching and learning processes.
The RETRIDOL director identified the diverse participation of academics, learner support professionals, instructional designers, policymakers, information technology specialists, ODL practitioners, representatives of the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities and learners themselves as an opportunity to examine inclusion from different perspectives.
She also acknowledged the contributions of the workshop’s resource persons: Dr Sefiya Omuya, Director of Counselling and Career Development at NOUN; Christiana Uzoukwu, Head of the university’s Special Needs Unit; and Dr Florence Adewunmi, a special education practitioner.
Professor Ofoha expressed appreciation to the NOUN Vice-Chancellor for supporting staff participation in the workshop and to COL for its continued partnership with RETRIDOL.
She urged participants to ensure that the knowledge and ideas generated during the workshop translated into practical improvements in institutional policies, learner support and accessible education across the region.
In his vote of thanks, Prof.Olugbenga Ajadi,thanked all participants and wish them a fruiful deliberation.
The workshop brings together stakeholders from higher education institutions and relevant government and regulatory agencies across West Africa to explore practical approaches to integrating assistive technologies into open and distance learning and strengthening educational opportunities for learners with disabilities.
However, the workshop featured plenary sessions on Draft Recommendations and validation as well as designing inclusive Learning Environments for Differently-Abled Learners in ODL among others.
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