At 4 PM, on a rainy, Tuesday afternoon in 2025, scores of people rushed into a four-story, four-story building located at the heart Nigeria’s startup capital Yaba. They were scurrying for shelter from the relentless rain that had been falling throughout the afternoon.
The people rushing inside were not just seeking shelter. They were there to launch the newly constructed study centre of Nigeria’s only accredited private open University, MIVA.
Launched by edtech innovator uLesson in 2023, MIVA offers undergraduate degrees and postgraduate degrees, including computer science, software development, accounting, economics and business management. MIVA has brought learning to its students for two years and more than 9,000 learners.
There are many things that are more important than studying. Sim Shagaya said that having a community was one of those things as he welcomed everyone to the opening ceremony for the study centre launch.
“The University is not just a study place; it’s a community that allows you to connect with people who share your interests,” the renowned entrepreneur said, delivering his remarks as if he were delivering a distinguished Ivy League address.
After his speech, the crowd, which was mostly MIVA students and journalists, as well as potential learners who had come to explore the newly-opened space, applauded. MIVA, which had 500 students in 2023 is on track to have 10,000 students by May. Plans are to reach 20,000 students by the end of the year and 100,000 students by 2027. To achieve this vision, it is essential to expand study centres such as this one.
MIVA Open University, one of Nigeria’s open universities, is a solution to the capacity issue in the tertiary system. Only 600,000 of the 1.8m students who sat the Joint Matriculation Board exams, an entrance exam for Nigerian tertiary education institutions in 2022 were admitted. Nigeria’s 170 colleges can only accommodate 1.8 million students. Even those who pass the college entrance exams will not be able to find a place.
One of the many study centres that the university plans on launching, the study centre is a four-story space with high-spec features. It houses study rooms, coworking spaces, a gymnasium (although it was not yet equipped when this report was written), a CBT center, and a roof for events.
The Nigerian law requires MIVA to have a centre to conduct exams for undergraduate students. The physical centres are a way for the university of attracting new students. MIVA mimics the “microcampus” strategy of National University in the U.S., which has over 250 centres that serve half a million students.
Iheanyi Acwitti, MIVA’s registrar, chief academic officer and registrar, told TechCabal that they were inspired by the correlation between physical presence and user growth. She cited data showing a direct link between campus footprints and enrollment spikes.
Akwitti said that the launch of the centre was not motivated by profit, but it will make money through leasing out some facilities to external users. The registrar said that MIVA would launch similar study centers in rural areas across the country without electricity or internet access.
Miva’s main revenue stream is tuition, but the study centers open up new income streams. During non-exam times, the centres will also serve as co-working spaces for the public and as event venues. Non-students can also pay for gym memberships and other amenities.
The mixed-use model reduces costs and increases brand visibility while reducing costs. Aniekeme Umoh is MIVA’s chief operational officer. “It allows for us to charge efficiently and remain competitive in price, while still generating returns,” she said.
MIVA launched its study centre at a time when more edtech companies in the country are combining physical locations with digital models. AltSchool has recently opened campuses in Malta to introduce a hybrid model where learners can interact with tutors in person. While these edtechs primarily offer online learning to their users, they recognize that some elements–face-to-face interaction and community–of traditional education remain invaluable and are integrating both approaches to better serve students’ evolving needs.
At 4:52 PM the rain finally stops and the crowd, now more curious, enters through the glass doors to tour the new MIVA flagship. Students and would-be students laugh as they peek into study rooms, try out co-working spaces and imagine rooftop parties in clearer skies.
After the building tour, students and guests gathered together in the conference room. MIVA revealed MIND, its new AI-powered assistant. MIND, unlike a typical chatbot is designed to seamlessly integrate into each student’s experience of learning, offering adaptive feedback and interactive quizzing. It could revolutionise the way Nigerian students learn and succeed. MIND, which is scheduled to launch in May, will be available for MBA students at the university. It will help them study by using case studies and tests for critical thinking and comprehension.
Ayooluwa Nhinlola is MIVA’s chief contents officer. She said that writing an essay was not the best way to test understanding. Conversation is the best way to understand how people learn. MIND’s core idea is to let students have real-time conversation with the AI. The first flagship centre has opened, but MIVA’s ambitions are much bigger and the rollout continues to accelerate.
