Nigeria's American Open University (A-Global) has formally opened its global campus in Ibadan, promising to revolutionise higher education and close the gap between academic credentials and professional needs.

The "Future Forward" theme event, which drew in academics, business executives, government regulators, and community members, signalled the start of a revolutionary, tech-driven educational paradigm for Nigeria and Africa.

Dr David Seyi Akanbi, the institution's president and founder, said during the event that the school was founded to question the conventional promise of education, which no longer ensures employability.

He said, “Visions don’t die; even when the visioners pass on, the dream continues. Today, the dream has become reality.”

He claims the school was created to replace antiquated teaching methods with a hybrid system that blends online education, industry collaborations, and international exposure.

“The old promise of ‘go to school, get good grades, get a job’ is broken; we are here to fix that by building a new model that makes the old one obsolete.”

He went on to say that collaborations with multinational tech companies like Microsoft, Google, and Cisco would allow students to compete abroad without having to leave Nigeria. He discussed "The Autarchic–Asymmetric Model for Nigerian Higher Education" in his keynote speech.

According to Professor Francis Egbokhare of the University of Ibadan (UI), inadequate institutional imagination and poor use of resources, rather than a lack of resources, are the root causes of Nigeria's educational problems.

He said, “Infrastructure exists but is underused. Talent exists but is excluded,” he said, proposing a self-reliant and technology-driven model that repurposes community spaces as learning hubs. “Higher education must be redesigned for the country we have, not the one we are copying.”

Key stakeholders also sent goodwill messages during the event, such as Mr Toyin Olatayo, Academic Director of UniTES Cisco Academy, who emphasised the value of integrating industry certifications into academic programmes, and Mrs Temitope Akintola, Zonal Director of JAMB, Ibadan, who praised the university's emphasis on quality and accessibility.

Professional associations like the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) and the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) have endorsed the university's focus on workforce preparedness.

Leaders from the host community, the Oyo State Council, the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), and the Oyo State Police Command were also in attendance. They greeted the organisation and promised their support.

A tour of the Global Campus and an introduction to the university's hybrid learning platforms marked the conclusion of the event.

The institution, however, announced that it has commenced admissions into NUC-approved undergraduate programmes in technology, business and public administration, with curricula integrated with artificial intelligence, data analytics and digital strategy.