On 6 January 2025, the International Institute of Online Education (IIOE) Annual Partnership Meeting 2024 was successfully held. The International Centre for Higher Education Innovation under the auspices of UNESCO (UNESCO-ICHEI) jointly organised the meeting with the IIOE 2024 Rotating Presidency Unit, Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria. The meeting gathered more than 170 participants of the IIOE ecosystem, including representatives of higher education institutions (HEIs), enterprises, and experts.
The meeting was moderated by Ms. BI Xiaohan, Deputy Director of UNESCO-ICHEI. The meeting reviewed UNESCO-ICHEI's achievements in 2024 and introduced the 2025 work plan. Key discussions of the meeting focused on the following three topics: experience-sharing of IIOE National Centres on their localised training and activities, launch of IIOE Higher Education Digitalisation Pioneer Case Award 2025, and the 2025 IIOE Rotating Presidency Unit Rotation. The meeting aimed to strengthen the IIOE global partnership and empower higher education workforce in the digital and Artificial Intelligence (AI) era through the exchange of localised experiences from IIOE National Centres.
Group photo of meeting participants
Prof. JIN Li, Director of UNESCO-ICHEI and Vice President of Southern University of Science and Technology, and Prof. Kabiru Bala, Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria (2024 IIOE Rotating Presidency Unit) delivered opening remarks respectively.
Prof. JIN Li began by expressing his gratitude to the 2024 IIOE Rotating Presidency Unit. Since its establishment in 2019, IIOE has expanded into a global network of more than 120 higher education institutions (HEIs), 43 regional and international organisations, and over 30 enterprise partners across 41 countries in 11 sub-regions. Prof. JIN Li highlighted the achievements of UNESCO-ICHEI in collaboration with IIOE National Centres in course co-development, IIOE Micro-Certification Project for Higher Education Workforce Digital Competency Building (IIOE Micro-Certification Project), and high-level regional policy dialogues. These achievements represent a testament to UNESCO-ICHEI’s and IIOE partners' commitment to empowering HEIs through cutting-edge technology. In 2025, UNESCO-ICHEI will initiate the IIOE Higher Education Digitalisation Pioneer Case Award 2025 and organise high-level policy dialogues in different subregions. By further deepening collaboration with IIOE partners, UNESCO-ICHEI aims to empower the higher education workforce and support IIOE partners towards innovative development of higher education.
Prof. JIN Li, Director of UNESCO-ICHEI and Vice President of Southern University of Science and Technology, delivering opening remarks
Prof. Kabiru Bala reflected on the achievements of the collaboration between the IIOE Nigeria National Centre and UNESCO-ICHEI in 2024, including course co-development, joint research, the implementation of the IIOE Micro-Certification Project, and the organisation of national policy dialogue and capacity-building workshops. He also acknowledged the valuable support provided by UNESCO-ICHEI for partner HEIs.
Prof. Kabiru Bala, Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria, delivering opening remarks
Mr. SIT Fung, Assistant Director of UNESCO-ICHEI, highlighted UNESCO-ICHEI's achievements in 2024 in expanding the IIOE global partnership network, co-developing IIOE courses, implementing the IIOE Micro-Certification Project, hosting high-level regional policy dialogues, and installing Smart Classrooms. Looking ahead to 2025, UNESCO-ICHEI plans to further expand the IIOE partnership network and enhance multilateral collaborations with IIOE partners. Through efforts such as upscaling the localised implementation of the IIOE Micro-Certification Project, hosting high-level regional policy dialogues, and implementing more Smart Classrooms, UNESCO-ICHEI aims to further promote the digital transformation among IIOE partner HEIs, thereby contributing to Sustainable Development Goal 4.
Mr. SIT Fung, Assistant Director of UNESCO-ICHEI, delivering a presentation
During the session on sharing of the work of IIOE National Centres, representatives of the IIOE National Centres in Egypt, Nigeria, Indonesia, and Uzbekistan shared their practices and experiences in leveraging IIOE resources to conduct localised training and activities.
Prof. Mona Abdel-Aal Elzahry, Executive Director of the Education Strategy Administration, Ain Shams University, Egypt and Director of the IIOE Egypt National Centre, introduced the localised implementation of the IIOE Micro-Certification Project in Egypt and shared the challenges and opportunities in teacher professional development in Egypt. In 2025, the IIOE Egypt National Centre plans to collaborate with partner institutions and UNESCO-ICHEI to jointly develop more IIOE courses, enhancing the digital capacity of higher education teachers.
Prof. Mona Abdel-Aal Elzahry, Executive Director of the Education Strategy Administration, Ain Shams University, Egypt and Director of the IIOE Egypt National Centre, sharing the work of IIOE Egypt National Centre
Prof. Muhammed Bashir Mu'azu, Head of the Department of Computer Science, Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria and Director of the IIOE Nigeria National Centre, shared the effective practices of the IIOE Nigeria National Centre in 2024, including the localised implementation of the IIOE Micro-Certification Project, IIOE course co-development, the development of draft AI policy for higher education in Nigeria, and the organisation of a national-level policy dialogue. He further emphasised that UNESCO-ICHEI played a critical role in the success of the IIOE Nigeria National Centre, particularly through resources and activities such as capacity-building webinars, IIOE training, and Smart Classroom provision. These have significantly enhanced the digital and AI competencies of the higher education workforce in Nigeria.
Prof. Muhammed Bashir Mu'azu, Head of the Department of Computer Science, Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria and Director of the IIOE Nigeria National Centre, sharing the work of IIOE Nigeria National Centre
Prof. Paulina Pannen, Indonesia Cyber Education Institute (ICE-I), Indonesia and Ms. Rahayu Dwi Riyanti, Director of ICE-I and Director of the IIOE Indonesia National Centre, presented the achievements of the IIOE Indonesia National Centre in 2024, including the successful organisation of the Southeast Asia High-Level Policy Dialogue and the progress in implementing the IIOE Micro-Certification Project. In 2025, the IIOE Indonesia National Centre plans to continue optimising and improving training resources, develop online courses on green transition, and further disseminate IIOE courses and programmes across Indonesia.
Prof. Paulina Pannen, Indonesia Cyber Education Institute (ICE-I), Indonesia and Ms. Rahayu Dwi Riyanti, Director of ICE-I and Director of the IIOE Indonesia National Centre, sharing the work of IIOE Indonesia National Centre
Dr. Sherbek Normatov, Head of Department of Information Library Systems, Tashkent University of Information Technologies, Uzbekistan and representative of IIOE Uzbekistan National Centre, reflected on the establishment of IIOE Uzbekistan National Centre and its strategic collaboration with UNESCO-ICHEI. He also expressed confidence in further strengthening the partnership and conducting IIOE training and activities.
Dr. Sherbek Normatov, Head of Department of Information Library Systems, Tashkent University of Information Technologies, Uzbekistan, sharing the work of IIOE Uzbekistan National Centre
Prof. Lim Cher Ping, Chief Expert of IIOE and Chair Professor of Learning Technologies and Innovation at the Education University of Hong Kong, China, officially announced the launch of the IIOE Higher Education Digitalisation Pioneer Case Award 2025. Established by UNESCO-ICHEI, the award aims to recognise the achievements of IIOE partners who are pioneering IIOE flagship projects to facilitate digital transformation. The IIOE Higher Education Digitalisation Pioneer Case Award 2025 is themed "IIOE Ecosystem-Driven Promising Practices: Empowering Workforce, Innovation, and Collaboration" and has four categories: developing digital and AI competencies through IIOE Micro-Certification; enabling localised digital empowerment initiatives through IIOE National Centres; leveraging Smart Classroom operations for teaching and learning innovation and excellence; strengthening global industry-university collaboration for higher education digital empowerment. Applications for the award will be accepted from 6 January to 31 May 2025. The evaluation process will be completed by the end of August 2025. The award ceremony is scheduled to take place in September 2025.
Prof. Lim Cher Ping, Chief Expert of IIOE and Chair Professor of Learning Technologies and Innovation at the Education University of Hong Kong, China, announcing the launch of the IIOE Higher Education Digitalisation Pioneer Case Award 2025
The meeting announced that the IIOE Rotating Presidency Unit for 2025 will be Indonesia Cyber Education Institute, Indonesia. Prof. Ojat Darojat, representative of the 2025 IIOE Rotating Presidency Unit, Chairman of the Consortium of Indonesia Cyber Education Institute, and Rector of Universitas Terbuka, delivered a speech. Prof. Ojat Darojat began by expressing his gratitude for the support from IIOE partner HEIs. He highlighted that, as the IIOE Rotating Presidency Unit for 2025, ICE-I will leverage its institutional strengths to actively promote IIOE projects and activities. Prof. Ojat Darojat expressed confidence in the future development of the IIOE ecosystem and looked forward to closer collaborations with UNESCO-ICHEI and IIOE partners. With joint efforts, IIOE will continuously empower the higher education workforce and advance the digital transformation of HEIs.
Prof. Ojat Darojat, Chairman of the Consortium of Indonesia Cyber Education Institute and Rector of Universitas Terbuka, delivering a speech
Prof. LI Ming, Secretary-General of the IIOE Secretariat, delivered closing remarks. He emphasised that the achievements of UNESCO-ICHEI would not have been possible without the collective efforts of all its partners. Looking ahead to 2025, UNESCO-ICHEI will deepen its collaboration with IIOE partners and align digital transformation with green and sustainable development, thus building a global ecosystem for higher education digital transformation. He encouraged all IIOE partners to actively participate in the application for the IIOE Higher Education Digitalisation Pioneer Case Award 2025, contributing their expertise to advancing the digital transformation of higher education across the globe.
Prof. LI Ming, Secretary-General of the IIOE Secretariat, delivering closing remarks
On 6 January 2025, the International Institute of Online Education (IIOE) Annual Partnership Meeting 2024 was successfully held. The International Centre for Higher Education Innovation under the auspices of UNESCO (UNESCO-ICHEI) jointly organised the meeting with the IIOE 2024 Rotating Presidency Unit, Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria. The meeting gathered more than 170 participants of the IIOE e
