Over 900 Guyanese to attend Indira Gandhi University through GOAL

The Government of Guyana through its Guyana Online Academy Of Learning (GOAL) initiative in collaboration with the Indira Gandhi Open University (IGNOU) on Friday held a virtual signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and orientation for approximately 922 Guyanese students that will be attending the University.

With the awardees hailing from all 10 regions in Guyana, these students have a total of 25 programmes at their disposal.
The University is said to have the highest accreditation grade in India, an A++ from the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC).
Officials present at the signing were Public Service Minister, Sonia Parag, Director of GOAL, Prof. Jacob Opadeyi, IGNOU Vice Chancellor Prof. Nageshwar Rao, and other key members of the University and GOAL.
Minister Parag in her remarks reiterated that this initiative is a part of President Dr Irfan Ali’s vision which sought to provide youths with the opportunity to further elevate themselves and by extension, the country.

“The whole point of going to those community outreaches was to listen to the people. And indeed, the President did listen to those persons when they said that they wanted a higher education. That their desire was to develop themselves and by extension, develop the country”, she highlighted
Moreover, she encouraged the students to complete their chosen programmes to the best of their abilities while highlighting that as the country embarks on a massive development, its best resource is its human resource.
“As you pursue this new venture, you should definitely count it as a privilege, but you must also remember that it is the Government’s obligation to you. And also, you should utilize this opportunity that has come your way to the best of your ability”, the Minister further expressed.
“Guyana is also on a transformational cusp in all sectors and therefore, human resource in many skills is not only relevant but it’s necessary at this time. And so, you will contribute to that human capital or human resource which the country considers its most valuable asset.”
Meanwhile, Professor Rao stated that the journey and official signing is a historical moment for both institutions.
“It’s a great historic moment for both countries and also for both institutions. The journey that has been started eight to ten months back, but now it has culminated to a formal proposal which is now revolved in to a Memorandum of Agreement.
“Only three months ago, Education Minister, Priya Manickchand and the Government of India had discussions on how to move ahead as far as this particular collaboration is concerned…Our prime consideration is support services to learners of Guyana, offline as well as online learning,” he said.
The learners will be given all online and offline support needed to successfully complete their programmes with specific requirements.
Head of the GOAL, Professor Jacob Opadeyi stated that the MOA was long awaited and he looks forward to the partnership and the support the students will enjoy.
IGNOU, established in 1985 is said to be the world’s largest university with the largest enrollment rate.
The university regularly updates its curriculum to keep up to date with the changing dynamics of learning and has fulfilled its mandate of providing accessible, equitable affordable and quality education for students around the world.
A total of 1671 more Guyanese now have access to tertiary education. These persons are a part of the 6000 GOAL awardees for the year 2021.