Professor Asha Kanwar, President and CEO of the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), will speak at the University of Ibadan on 26 January 2017 on the topic “Innovation in Higher Education?” as part of a two-day training programme on open and distance learning (ODL) skills. A leading advocate for learning for sustainable development and thought leader in the field of ODL, Professor Kanwar will also participate in the programme events.

“It is a pleasure to be invited back to Nigeria to help increase awareness and support institutional capacity building in ODL technologies and practices,” said Professor Kanwar. “COL enjoys a close collaboration with several Nigerian institutions and organisations, and we look forward to continuing to support Nigeria’s efforts in teacher education, bringing out-of-school youth back to education and further improving access to quality higher education and training.”

COL works on a variety of initiatives across Nigeria in areas including higher education, technical and vocational skills training and teacher education. COL and NOUN work collaboratively to support the Regional Training and Research Institute for Distance and Open Learning (RETRIDOL), which serves as a centre for expertise in open and distance learning for West Africa.

Nigeria is an active member of the Commonwealth and provides financial and intellectual contributions to COL. As a major donor, Nigeria has a seat on COL’s Board of Governors, which is currently occupied by HE Ambassador Mariam Katagum.

About Asha Kanwar
Professor Asha Kanwar is one of the world’s leading advocates for learning for sustainable development. She is the President and Chief Executive Officer of COL, which she joined in 2003 as the Education Specialist – Higher Education and Policy, later serving as Vice-President for six years. Prior to joining COL, Professor Kanwar worked in Africa as a senior consultant in open and distance learning at UNESCO’s Regional Office for Education in Africa (BREDA) in Dakar, Senegal. She has over 30 years of experience in teaching, research and administration, as well as several books, research papers and articles to her credit.

About the Commonwealth of Learning
The Commonwealth of Learning is an intergovernmental organisation created by Commonwealth Heads of Government to promote the development and sharing of open learning and distance education knowledge, resources and technologies. Hosted by the Government of Canada and headquartered in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, COL is the world’s only intergovernmental organisation solely concerned with the promotion and development of distance education and open learning. COL is helping developing nations improve access to quality education and training.

-30-