EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND, 11 September 2019 – Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) Vice-Chancellor, Professor Datuk Dr. Asma Ismail has been selected to receive the Honorary Fellowship from Commonwealth of Learning (COL).

In a letter from the President and Chief Executive Officer of COL, Professor Asha S. Kanwar, it stated that the award is conferred to Asma in recognition of her outstanding contribution in the advancement of education in Malaysia, when she served as the Director-General in the Ministry of Education Malaysia and subsequently as the Vice-Chancellor of USM.

It was also mentioned that Asma’s contribution to promoting access to quality higher education, especially for women, has been a great inspiration to many around the Commonwealth.

Asma would be conferred the award at the ongoing Ninth Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning (PCF9) in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Held in partnership with the Open University United Kingdom, the theme for PCF9 this year is “Innovations for Quality Education and Lifelong Learning”.

Asma would be joining the list of recipients of the award, which was first conferred in the 1998-1999 term, to honour carefully selected individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the growth and development of technology-mediated learning in their own country and internationally and/or to the advancement of education in the Commonwealth generally.

COL is an intergovernmental organisation established by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1988. 

Based in Canada, COL works closely with Commonwealth governments, local institutions and agencies, in forming mutually beneficial linkages in the spirit of equality and participation.

It was set up to encourage the development and sharing of open learning and distance education knowledge, resources and technologies. 

Among its key international partners are UNESCO, WHO, World Bank and the Commonwealth Secretariat, to name a few.

Text: Mazlan Hanafi Basharudin