On 13 May 2016, Professor Asha Kanwar, President and CEO of the Commonwealth of Learning, gave a keynote speech at an international seminar to develop Pakistan’s first ever National Policy for Open and Distance Learning. The two-day long seminar was held 13-14 May 2016 at Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) in Islamabad and was hosted by AIOU and the Higher Education Commission. The event saw open and distance learning stakeholders from across Pakistan joined by international speakers.

“I’m pleased to be at this important meeting and look forward to bringing an international perspective as you consider various options for developing a national ODL policy,” Professor Kanwar told the attendees. “Our mission is to help Commonwealth member states and institutions to harness the potential of distance learning and technologies for expanding access to education and training.”

Professor Kanwar is one of the world’s leading advocates for learning for sustainable development and brings a depth of expertise on open and distance learning and open educational resources.