Future Proofing Higher Education in the Pacific with Open and Flexible Learning

Affordable access to higher education is a major challenge for small Pacific island nations. The University of the South Pacific which is owned and governed by twelve island nations in this region plays a special role in meeting this challenge. In its fiftieth year, a few recent developments at USP provide a useful case study for how this challenge can be addressed to provide affordable access to educational opportunity for residents of twelve Pacific Island nations in various stages of development. The island nations served by the University of the South Pacific are spread over 33 million square kilometres of the Pacific, with several official languages and many more indigenous languages, and use seven distinct currencies. As USP celebrates its fiftieth year in 2018, it has embarked upon two specific initiatives that will enable the university to map out a pathway for the future of education for the next generation and within the context of current and new strategies for the design and
implementation of meaningful education throughout the member nations.