By Ishaku Williams Adakye
The long-awaited takeoff of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) Kwoi Study Centre has continued to suffer unnecessary delay, largely due to the inability of the Ham Community Development Association (HAMCDA) to play its expected coordinating role. This delay is not just unfortunate—it is a collective setback to the educational advancement and socio-economic development of Ham land and the entire southern Kaduna region.
While the Kwoi Development Association (KDA) has shown commendable commitment by investing millions of naira to ensure the smooth establishment of the study centre, the efforts appear one-sided. KDA alone cannot carry this burden. The establishment of NOUN in Kwoi is not a KDA project—it is a Ham project, and by extension, a Southern Kaduna project. It therefore calls for the full participation of all Community Development Associations (CDAs) across Ham land, as well as the collective support of our sons and daughters both at home and in the diaspora.
Kudos must be given to Rt. Hon. Amos Gwamna Magaji, the distinguished Member of the Federal House of Representatives representing Zangon Kataf/Jaba Federal Constituency, who graciously offered his building to serve as a temporary venue for the university’s takeoff. His patriotic gesture demonstrates true leadership and a deep commitment to the educational advancement of our people. However, his individual sacrifice must be complemented by a collective response from the community.
The key question remains: Who benefits from the establishment of NOUN in Kwoi? The answer is simple—everybody. The study centre will serve the young and the old, the employed and unemployed, the public servant and the trader, the teacher and the farmer, the Christian and the Muslim alike. It will open doors of educational access to those who missed the opportunity of conventional university education, and it will serve as a catalyst for knowledge, capacity building, and community development.
If everyone stands to benefit, then why should KDA alone bear the cross? Where are the other community development associations across Ham land? Why has HAMCDA not taken the lead to rally all CDAs, stakeholders, and well-meaning individuals to contribute their quota toward this noble cause? It is time for HAMCDA to rise and live up to its responsibility as the apex coordinating body of all Ham community associations. The National President of HAMCDA must act now—decisively and urgently—to ensure the immediate takeoff of the NOUN Kwoi Study Centre.
Education remains the foundation of any meaningful development, and as a people known historically as champions of Western education in Southern Kaduna, we cannot afford to be left behind. Western education came to Ham land as far back as 1910. More than a century later, what can we truly show for it? If we fail to collectively embrace and support this golden opportunity, history will not forgive us for allowing disunity, complacency, or indifference to hinder progress.
Furthermore, this call for action extends beyond Ham land. Other ethnic groups residing among us—the Igbo, Yoruba, Hausa, Fulani, and others—should also see this project as a shared responsibility. The NOUN Kwoi Study Centre is not for Ham people alone; it is for all residents of Jaba and Kachia Local Government Areas, and even neighboring LGAs such as Jama’a, Kagarko, Kaura, and Zangon Kataf. Everyone will benefit from the academic, social, and economic ripple effects of having a functional university study centre in the region.
The time for talk is over. The time for action is now. Let every Ham son and daughter, every friend of Ham, and every lover of progress rally behind this vision. Let the various CDAs in Nok, Samban, Fai, Chori, Nduyah, Sabzuro, Gidan-Mana, Jaba-Kogo, Daddu, and all corners of Ham land unite and contribute. Whether in cash or in kind, every contribution matters.
The National Open University of Nigeria, Kwoi Study Centre, is a legacy project—one that will outlive us all. Let us not allow bureaucratic delay, lack of coordination, or community apathy to rob future generations of this invaluable gift. Let history remember us as the generation that acted, that built, and that gave education a permanent home in Ham land.
HAMCDA must act. KDA must be supported. Every Ham son and daughter must contribute.
Because in the end, when NOUN Kwoi Study Centre takes off, we all rise together.