Education Minister Praises NOUN for Pioneering Moodle Deployment in Africa

Nigeria’s Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has commended the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) for its innovative use of Moodle, highlighting its position as the second-largest open and distance learning network in sub-Saharan Africa.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Moodle Moot Africa Conference 2025 on October 9, 2025, at the Shehu Musa Yar’adua Centre in Abuja, Alausa praised NOUN’s early adoption of Moodle at scale, noting its role in serving Nigeria’s diverse urban and rural populations.

The conference, themed “Leveraging the Power of Disruptive Technologies for Africa’s Educational Transformation,” was described by Alausa as timely, reflecting both the urgency and opportunities in advancing education through technology.

He emphasized that open-source solutions like Moodle, a learning management system, offer cost-effectiveness, flexibility, local customization, hosting scalability, and ownership to African educational institutions. “NOUN is setting the pace for educational innovation,” Alausa stated, underscoring the platform’s transformative impact on global learning and its potential to drive educational progress across the continent.

Dr. Ernest A. Aiyedun, Director of Public Relations at NOUN, reported the minister’s remarks, highlighting the university’s leadership in digital education.