Fireside chats on higher education and (inter)national development

Panelists: Romeela Mohee, Commissioner of the Higher Education Commission, Mauritius; Fernando León García, President of the International Association of University Presidents (IAUP) and President of CETYS University; Ethel Pascua-Valenzuela, Director of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organisation. 

Moderator: Victoria Galán-Muros (UNESCO IESALC)

Investment, quality, and inclusion in higher education are the major priorities to guarantee education for development. The chat revolved around the financing of higher education and sustainability and about the challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

• COVID-19 has transformed the way higher education is delivered in Mauritius. The country has developed standards for online learning to assess the quality of education. 
• Online learning is more than then the use of technology. 
• As lessons learned, Mauritius is designing a national strategy to train professors in online pedagogy. 
• University cooperation is not an option anymore. 
• In terms of funding, we need to start talking about the sustainability of funding. 
• Funding is a complex topic. To be successful, it needs the cooperation of all actors (government, society, business, and academia). 
•  Providing funding to higher education system is one way to address SDGs. 
• Student profile is changing, so, universities must adapt their processes and programmes to meet their needs. 
• Investment, quality and inclusion were remarked as major priorities to guarantee higher education for development. 
• Given the diversity of the region, the cooperation strategy of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organisation is focused in provide equal opportunities for all young people.