To foster active engagement, collaboration, and sustained dialogue between open and distance learning (ODL) institutions, industry partners, and the skills sector, the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), in partnership with the Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (CEMCA) – COL’s regional centre – convened a recent three-day stakeholders’ meeting at the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) Maidan Garhi campus. The meeting brought together 38 participants, including representatives from 16 open universities, nine Vice Chancellors, key stakeholders from the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), human resource experts and representatives from the skills sector.
Professor Uma Kanjilal, Vice-Chancellor of IGNOU, delivered the welcome address, expressing appreciation to COL while emphasising the importance of aligning curricula with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, particularly the integration of employable skills and competency-based learning. Chief Guest, Mr Mrutyunjay Behera, Economic Advisor at the Ministry of Education, underscored the fast-evolving demands of the industry and encouraged universities to provide students with opportunities to enhance their skills through curricular, co-curricular, and extracurricular activities.
Dr Nirav Mandir, Chief Human Capital and Sustainability Officer at Shree Ramkrishna Exports, echoed the urgency for closer collaboration between academia and industry. He highlighted the need to develop niche, skills-based programmes and urged educational institutions not to operate in silos but to engage meaningfully with industry stakeholders.
Several Vice Chancellors highlighted key challenges during the meeting, particularly regarding the lack of communication in securing student internships and formalising institutional partnerships through memorandums of understanding (MOUs). Both parties acknowledged the need for improved dialogue and committed to strengthening communication moving forward.
A key aspect of the meeting was its emphasis on inclusion. Ms Aparajita from the Changeinkk Foundation shared her personal experiences navigating higher education with specific learning disabilities (SLDs). Her compelling narrative advocated for an inclusive employability framework that supports learners with SLDs, making the case for more responsive and adaptive institutional policies.
Participants also discussed the proposal to establish a Consortium of Open and Distance Learning Universities, serving as a unified platform to collectively advocate for and coordinate efforts on graduate employability.
Professor Jane-Frances Agbu, COL’s Adviser: Higher Education and the project lead, noted that this stakeholders’ meeting is part of a broader collaborative initiative between COL and CEMCA on graduate employability in ODL systems. In Phase 1, key milestones included convening the stakeholder forum of heads of 17 open universities in India, conducting an employability readiness review of all participating institutions, and capacity building to develop institutional Graduate Employability Frameworks. Phase 2, scheduled from July 2025 to June 2026, will focus on capacity building for curriculum enhancement with employability attributes, as well as the co-development of skill-based courses.
Insights and emerging practices from this project will be shared at the Eleventh Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning (PCF11), contributing to the broader discourse on innovation for resilient societies for sustainable economic development.
