Africa-Press – Mauritius. A souvenir magazine to showcase the remarkable progress and to pay a tribute to everyone who have contributed to making the Open University (OU) of Mauritius one of the success stories of Mauritius in the higher education sector, was launched, this morning, during the celebrations organised to mark the 10th anniversary of the OU, in Réduit.
The Vice-Prime Minister, Minister of Education, Tertiary Education, Science and Technology, Mrs Leela Devi Dookun-Luchoomun, the Director General (DG) of the OU, Dr Kaviraj Sharma Sukon, the Chairperson of the OU Board, Dr Oomandra Nath Varma, and other personalities were present at the ceremony.
In her address, the VPM stressed that it is a matter of great pride that this institution, in a relatively short period of time, has been able to assert itself and secure its place in the higher education landscape of Mauritius.
“I note that the OU has experienced a positive growth over the last decade and is gradually coming to stand on its own feet,” she pointed out.
The Open University of Mauritius, Mrs Dookun-Luchoomun underlined, has over this last decade successfully established itself as a provider of higher education with the use of its main delivering method and has opened a wider access to university education to thousands of citizens of the Republic.
In addition, she emphasised that the University through its reliance upon digital tools, has successfully catered to the needs of working people who would otherwise not have had much time to attend full time courses.
This has successfully fueled the growth of this University such that, today, a number of benefits are self-evident, she indicated. On this score, the VPM highlighted that one of the first benefits was the support provided during the pandemic of COVID-19 to maintain the learning process even when schools had closed down.
“We did not wait for the pandemic to start with the digitalisation process of our education system as we had already come up with the help of the OU, with the Students’ Support Platform, to allow the continuity of our education during the confinement period,” she stated.
Mrs Dookun-Luchoomun also spoke about learning opportunities offered to employees. This University has accordingly become the privileged partner that provides learning opportunities to employees wishing to upgrade their qualifications, she highlighted.
All citizens of the Republic of Mauritius, including Rodrigues, can now benefit from courses that this University offers at their own pace without having to be physically present in Mauritius, the VPM said.
On this score, she remarked that this could be one of the reasons behind several organisations in the Corporate Sector encouraging their employees to join the OU which allows them to learn more without having to change their workload.
The VPM moreover lauded the initiatives of the OU for building solid partnerships with well-known institutions such as the Imperial College London and the Commonwealth of Learning.
She encouraged the OU’s staff to continue to progress as the University has, since its inception, demonstrated its ability to meet requirements of the industry and the citizens.
For his part, Dr Sukon extended gratitude to the Ministry of Education for allowing the OU to be part of Government’s Education and Health Hub of the Côte-d’Or Smart City project, whereby the laying of foundation stone ceremony is scheduled before the end of 2022.
“The challenges are great ahead as the landscape of tertiary education itself is changing and the way higher education will shape up will change,” the Director-General stressed.
In this context, he underlined that the OU aims at setting up an innovative campus with all the digital tools such as digital batteries and micro-credentialing, and offer a conducive environment for learners.
As for Dr Varma, he indicated that the demand for higher education is increasing exponentially in particular in our region, hence, it is imperative that the institution is consolidated to become a strong provider of quality higher education.
“The potential that new technology offers today should be instrumental in providing a quality learning experience to both local and international students,” he pointed out.
On this note, the Chairperson appealed for the collaboration of all the stakeholders and the staff of the University in ensuring that the second decade of the University is one of growth and improvement in quality and comprise more other pillars for the OU.
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