🌟 Meet Mary🌟
Mary, a 43-year-old mother of seven children—six boys and one girl—is GVH Undi’s Village Development Committee Chairperson, a role traditionally held by men in her area. In Malawi, women are consistently underrepresented in positions of leadership.
“At times, the thought of leading crossed my mind. But when I remembered the community I belong to, such a thought was easily put to sleep,” explained Mary. She pointed out that the culture she grew up in led her to believe that leadership positions were not for women. “I grew up with the belief that leadership is for men. This belief was reinforced when I got married, as I was taught that I had to be submissive to my husband. As such, even in public, I stood by my husband’s leadership,” she added.
Mary has defied the odds to become a leader in her community. “The changed perception of women in leadership in this community has helped me to easily manage roles both at home as a mother and wife and in this community as a Village Development Committee Chair,” she shared.
Read Mary’s journey to becoming a leader: empoweringwomenandgirls.col.org/ewg-stories/marys-journey-to-female-leadership/
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Empowering youth with FRIEND Fiji.
In partnership with FRIEND Fiji @FriendFiji, the Commonwealth of Learning’s @COL4D Pacific Partnership for Open, Distance, and Flexible Learning (with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade New Zealand @MFATNV) has helped make a lasting impact on youth development this past year. Over 2,500 young individuals, including women and persons with disabilities, gained specialised skills to enhance their employability and entrepreneurial potential.
The diverse training sessions covered soap-making, business management, oil infusion, organic farming, and food processing. These programs have opened new doors of opportunity for many young people across the region.
Success Spotlight: Aliposo Nainima from Naikoroni, Dawasamu, Tailevu, shares:
“"I am 24 years old. This is my first time to hear about FRIEND. I came to participate to represent our youth group. After this training, I realised how important this training is and how easy it will be to start as we will use coconuts, herbs, fruits, sweet-smelling flowers, barks and roots which we could utilise for soap, infused oil and activated charcoal. Now, I have ideas how to generate income from natural resources using the learnt skills from FRIEND. Thank you, FRIEND, this is the first time to attend a training that opens up my mind into business as youths are more into rugby these days."
#COL4D #MFATNZ #YouthEmpowerment #PacificSkillsTraining #SkillsForSuccess #Entrepreneurship #FRIENDFiji #SustainableGrowth
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Enhancing learner support in open higher education.
The Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (CEMCA) #COL_CEMCA, the regional centre of the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) #COL4D, partnered with the Jharkhand State Open University (JSOU) to host a 'Capacity Building Workshop for Learner Support Centre (LSC) Coordinators and Staff' in Jharkhand, India. JSOU is the most recent addition to the list of open universities (OUs) in India, so CEMCA signed an MOU with the university to strengthen its open and distance learning (ODL) system.
The training aimed to build essential skills for the 145 participants, leading to more and better prospects for distance learners at JSOU. The workshop is expected to result in a more proficient and effective workforce capable of advancing the institution's mission of providing high-quality distance education opportunities to the unreached communities in Jharkhand state, where a significant proportion of the population continues to experience poverty.
The workshop Sessions covered the role of LSCs in expanding ODL, academic counsellor responsibilities, regulatory frameworks, and the use of technology for admissions, finance, examinations, and teaching.
Training methods included situational analysis, presentations, discussions, group activities, and participant assessments, ensuring a hands-on learning experience. The workshop reinforced the strategic importance of LSCs in enhancing ODL access and effectiveness in India.
Professor (Dr) T N Sahu, Vice Chancellor, JSOU, commended CEMCA’s support to ODL institutions in India and referred to the recent MOU as an essential step towards establishing JSOU as an institution of repute among Indian OUs. Dr B. Shadrach, Director of CEMCA, underscored the pivotal role LSCs may play as the primary interface for JSOU to reach learners in remote and underserved areas.
Link to news: www.col.org/news/enhancing-learner-support-in-open-higher-education/
#OpenEducation #DistanceLearning #LearnerSupport #HigherEducation #ODL #CapacityBuilding #EducationalWorkshops #IndiaEducation
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