Updates
on NRNA’s Open University of Nepal (OUN) Initiative
Dr.
Ambika P. Adhikari, Dr. Pramod P. Dhakal, Dr. Drona P. Rasali, Dr. Raju
Adhikari
NRNA
OUN Task Force, SKI Committee
On July 14, 2016, President of Nepal
signed the Open University Nepal (OUN) bill into law. This was a major
milestone for the OUN project championed by NRNA in collaboration with the
Government of Nepal and several other stakeholders. Other major partners who
have played significant role in the mission are Canada Foundation for Nepal
(CFFN), Athabasca University, Canada and several other Nepali and international
organizations.
The bill establishes OUN as a public
university under Government of Nepal, where NRNA as a key partner organization,
will have significant representation in its highest governing body
The Nepali government and Nepali
academics had envisioned such a university since the 90’s. Under the Skill, Knowledge and Innovation
(SKI) Committee of NRNA, the OUN Task force has been operating since 2010 to take
this mission forward and help the Nepali government and academics realize the
vision.
What
is Open University?
By creating an open admission process,
eliminating the need for a pre-requisite degree for admission, allowing
flexible time period to complete the course, and offering on-line access to
courses, an open university can drastically improve access to higher education
for the disadvantaged groups. While the education in an open university will be
of high quality with credits that are completely transferable to any top-tier
university, it is open for anyone who can pass an entrance examination, and can
get admission. Open universities have revolutionized higher education in the
world by providing cheaper, easier, convenient, and on-demand higher education
to all, especially providing benefits to the communities that are marginalized,
poor and living in remote locations.
Creating
Support Base in Nepal
NRNA carried out robust partnership with
Government of Nepal and stakeholders in Nepal for the past six years to
collaboratively advance the OUN initiative.
To assist in the process, NRNA established several task forces and
committees and wrote many background papers, business plans, and created national
and international partnerships. Also, to further the cause of OUN, in 2012, Nepal
government officially formed Open University of Nepal Infrastructure
Development Board (OUN-IDB - http://ouidb.edu.np/), which included a member
from NRNA in the board. The Board helped further push the initiative towards
garnering resources, and preparing the background for introducing the OUN bill
in Nepal’s parliament.
Towards making the OUN Bill
become a reality, NRNA focused on undertaking the following tasks.
·
Attracting and developing network of diaspora
academics and leaders to participate in the OUN mission.
·
Persuading the leaders of the major political
parties and members of the parliamentary committee to support the OUN.
·
Lobbying and creating an informal all party
committee of parliamentarians in support of OUN Bill and OUN, and organizing
regular meetings.
·
Forming a high level team of parliament members,
academics, and civil society leaders to actively petition for OUN with active
engagement of NRNA.
·
Organizing wide interactions to create awareness
and support for OUN among Nepali academics, Diaspora members, Nepali government
and political party leaders, Nepali bureaucrats and civil society members.
·
Supporting in the creation and functioning of
OUN Infrastructure Development Board.
·
Regularly organizing all-day discussion program
on OUN during the NRNA global conventions in Nepal, and during other major
Diaspora events in several countries.
These interaction and promotion programs
in Nepal were designed to create awareness about the OUN initiative, and to generate
support for the initiative among the key stakeholders. The OUN team also organized
many group and individual meetings and events with senior government officials,
Nepal-based academicians, educationists, business people and potential beneficiaries
of OUN. In addition, OUN proponents in
NRNA held numerous meetings with the members of the Parliamentary Committee on
Women, Children, Elderly and Social Welfare and the officials of the Ministry
of Education to help draft and finalize the bill to establish OUN.
There were some unexpected delays in
getting the OUN Bill approved because of rapid replacements of concerned Nepali
government officials, including frequent changes in the government. With the
constant push from OUN’s Nepal-based project chair, and with the persistent support
from NRNA leadership, and with unyielding support from the government of Nepal,
most issues were resolved in due course and the initiative continued to make great
progress, and eventually succeeded in legally establishing the OUN.
Mobilizing International Support
The Canadian
Nepali Diaspora began the OUN initiative in 2009, and it was formally launched in
2010 during the NRNA regional conference in Houston, USA. To define the project
and to create a wide international support, NRNA organized numerous meetings in
several international locations including Canada, USA, Korea, Australia and Malaysia
to advance the OUN agenda which contributed to garner support, and refine the
plans for OUN. As the initial idea came largely from the Canadian Nepali
Diaspora, OUN held numerous meetings in many cities in Canada including in
Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Calgary, Athabasca and Edmonton.
Outside Canada, the meetings were held in many cities including in Houston, Los
Angeles, New York, Sydney, Melbourne, Seoul, and Kuala Lumpur. In 2015, OUN
Initiative (OUNI) was showcased at the Asian Open Universities Conference in
Kuala Lumpur.
Many international organizations have
been consistent supporters of the OUNI. Prime among those has been
Alberta-based Athabasca University (Canada’s Open University), which has
solidly supported the initiative right from the beginning. Athabasca continues to provide expert advice, and
technical and logistic support. OUN team has held numerous meetings with high
officials of Athabasca including its president, vice president, academic
managers and the director of distance education. Athabasca University has
offered a few pilot courses to students nominated by OUNI. California State (CSU)
University in Long Beach, California and University of Houston, Texas have also
remained steadfast supporters of the OUN initiative. CSU also helped establish
an online library for OUN within its global online library platform Merlot (http://ounl.merlot.org/).
Now the
OUN has become a formal and legal entity in Nepal, the NRNA OUN team will redouble
its efforts to work with Government of Nepal and other stakeholders to help the
Nepal Government successfully implement the project. NRNA and government will
work in full swing and seek the support from the Diaspora members and
international donors and organizations to help establish and operate the
university, maintaining international standards and keeping its doors open for the
marginalized and disadvantaged Nepali communities within Nepal and outside.
