COL in Samoa: Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2024.
The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM 2024) has concluded in Apia, Samoa—the first-ever CHOGM held in the Pacific Region. Presidents and Prime Ministers gathered under the theme “One Resilient Common Future: Transforming our Common Wealth” reaffirming their commitment to tackling global economic, environmental, and security challenges. The meeting explored ways to enhance resilience, sustainable trade, and inclusive growth while also emphasising the empowerment of youth and women.
At a CHOGM side event hosted by the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) #COL4D, participants celebrated the enduring partnership between COL and Samoa, which has advanced open, distance and flexible learning over the past decade. Chaired by Professor Patila Amosa, Vice Chancellor of the National University of Samoa (NUS), the session highlighted COL’s contributions to technology-enabled learning and youth training. These initiatives have greatly expanded access to quality learning resources, especially in remote areas of the Pacific region, and empowered both educators and students through blended learning models and hands-on skills development programs.
In the Leaders’ Statement and Samoa Communiqué on 26 October 2024 (www.thecommonwealth.org/news/chogm2024/Samoa-communique-leaders-statement-and-declarations), Heads of Government “commended the Commonwealth of Learning for the work on expanding access to quality education and training, including technical and vocational training, also through open, distance and technology-enabled learning,” highlighting the impact of COL’s work in open learning innovation in policy and praxis throughout the Commonwealth. Heads also applauded and recognised the valuable contribution of the Commonwealth of Learning along with other intergovernmental and accredited organisations, civil society, human rights defenders, women, youth, and other groups in our Commonwealth ‘Aiga’.
Professor Peter Scott @peter_scott, President and CEO of COL also delivered a report to foreign ministers to update them on COL’s progress. For details, see the brochure ‘Learning Innovation to Create a Resilient Future’ here: hdl.handle.net/11599/5662.
Antigua and Barbuda was chosen as the incoming Chair-in-Office and Host Country for the next CHOGM in 2026, making it the smallest state to host a Commonwealth summit. Expected topics of discussion include the challenges faced by Small Island Developing States, climate change, international trade, and economic innovation.
On the final day of the event, the Commonwealth Heads of Government selected the Honourable Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, currently the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Ghana, as the incoming Secretary-General of the Commonwealth in 2025.
#CHOGM2024 #Resilince #GEMReport #ODFL #Samoa #DistanceEducation #OpenLearning #TechnologyEnabledLearning #DigitalLearning #CapacityBuilding #Ghana #AntiguaAndBarbuda
... See MoreSee Less
At the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting #CHOGM2024 in Apia, Samoa – an event organised by #COL4D and the National University of Samoa (NUS), in partnership with UNESCO’s Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade New Zealand (MFAT) and chaired by NUS Vice Chancellor, Professor Patila Amosa, the 2024 Pacific Regional Report – Pacific Technology in Education: A TOOL ON WHOSE TERMS? was released.
The report examines technology's immense potential in education across 17 Pacific countries. COL’s President and CEO, Professor Peter Scott and Director of the GEM Report, Dr Manos Antoninis discussed the new report findings.
At the 24 October 2024 launch, Dr Antoninis noted that moving forward, “Technology needs to be able to adjust to the diversity of the Pacific region.”
In the context of this work Dr Helen Leslie, MFAT, New Zealand, also discussed the role of international development support in advancing education for resilience in the Pacific region, and Professor Ioana Chan Mow, NUS reviewed the NUS-COL relationship over the last 10 years. The overall work was then summarised by Dr Rajni Chand (Director, PACFOLD, University of the South Pacific, Fiji).
Read the full report here: www.unesco.org/gem-report/en/2024pacific
#Resilince #GEMReport #ODFL #Samoa #DistanceEducation #OpenLearning #TechnologyEnabledLearning #COL4D #DigitalLearning #CapacityBuilding #USPFIJI #MFATNZ
... See MoreSee Less
“The 2024 UNESCO GEM Pacific report provides a deep dive into how the countries in that region have embraced some of the positive opportunities of matching appropriate technologies to innovations in learning and teaching, particularly in support of the most marginalised,”
— Professor Peter Scott, President and CEO of the Commonwealth of Learning, on the occasion of the launch of the 2024 Pacific Regional Report by #GEMReport and the Commonwealth of Learning.
➡️ Discover more: bit.ly/2024pacific
#TechOnOurTerms #CHOGM2024
... See MoreSee Less