On August 27, 2020, the Colombo Plan Staff College (CPSC) Director General Dr. Ramhari Lamichhane participated in the Asian Development Bank (ADB) webinar on Establishing and Managing TVET Centers of Excellence as keynote speaker. Speakers from gold-awarded Asia Pacific Accreditation and Certification Commission (APACC) institutions including Politeknik Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (POLISAS) Malaysia, Politeknik College of Engineering and Technology (PCET) Mongolia, and TESDA Women’s Center (TWC) Philippines also provided their inputs and initiatives. The webinar was attended by 52 speakers and participants from different institutions and countries.

The webinar focused on three different aspects: 1) to highlight how the concept of Center of Excellence is defined in various countries; 2) to look at the criteria that define excellence along with APACC criteria; and 3) to discuss the responses of TVET institutions to the COVID-19 pandemic with particular focus on the transition towards online learning.

(From Left to Right; Ms. Lisa-Mari Josefin Kreibich, ADB Education Specialist and webinar moderator; Dr. Ramhari Lamichhane, CPSC Director General; and Mr. Brajesh Panth Chief of ADB Education Sector Group during his opening remarks)

The main findings of the study on TVET Centers of Excellence and TVET institutions’ response to COVID-19 pandemic conducted by Dr. Lamichhane was shared through this webinar.

Speakers from APACC gold-awarded institutions showcased their initiatives and highlighted the important factors that made them excellent such as industry partnerships, provision of training to teachers and trainers, financial autonomy such as generating income through research and development of own products, usage of flexible learning approach in the form of blended and distance learning, and utilization of various learning methods, tools, and assessment, among others.

Ms. Amie Suhana binti Samain, Senior Lecturer/ POLISAS APACC Secretary, Politeknik Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (POLISAS), Malaysia

Mr. Munkhbold Badarch, External Relations Specialist, Polytechnic College of Engineering and Technology (PCET), Mongolia

Ms. Mylene Somera, Officer-In-Charge, TESDA Women’s Center (TWC), Philippines