New Delhi, 5 June 2026

The Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (COL-CEMCA), in collaboration with the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), organised a three-day Workshop on Implementation of the Graduate Employability Framework using the Results-Based Management (RBM) Approach and Course Enhancement with Employability Attributes and Guidelines from 3–5 June 2026 at the IGNOU campus in New Delhi.

The workshop brought together over 20 faculty members from IGNOU and called for a transformative shift in Open and Distance Learning (ODL) from a focus on access to a focus on employability and lifelong career readiness.

The programme was inaugurated by Uma Kanjilal, Vice-Chancellor of Indira Gandhi National Open University, who underscored the importance of aligning higher education programmes with the evolving needs of learners and the labour market.

Delivering the keynote address, B. Shadrach, Director of COL-CEMCA, highlighted the need for competency-based curricula, integration of future skills such as artificial intelligence and data literacy, work-integrated learning opportunities, authentic assessment practices, and stronger industry partnerships. He emphasised that institutions such as IGNOU, with their extensive reach and learner base, are uniquely positioned to align education with labour market needs and become leading pathways for graduate employability and human capital development in line with the goals of the National Education Policy 2020.

The workshop aimed to equip faculty members with the knowledge and skills required to redesign programmes and courses with a stronger focus on employability, competency-based learning, and graduate outcomes. Through a series of interactive sessions and hands-on activities, participants worked on mapping competencies, aligning courses with graduate attributes, and incorporating employability indicators into curriculum design.

Faculty members also explored strategies for developing blended learning courses that integrate openly licensed educational resources and gender-responsive principles. By the end of the workshop, participants aimed to develop draft course enhancement outputs for further refinement and implementation within their respective programmes.

The initiative forms part of COL-CEMCA’s ongoing efforts to support higher education institutions in strengthening graduate employability and ensuring that learning pathways lead to meaningful career opportunities and lifelong success.