Pacific Islands Forum Education Ministers Meeting, 23-24 May 2005, Apia, Samoa, Technical and Vocational Education and Training in the Pacific through Open and Distance Learning By: Sir John Daniel, President & CEO, Commonwealth of Learning // My task today is to bring you up to date on the important aspect of education in the Pacific that is expressed in my title: Technical and Vocational Education and Training in the Pacific through Open and Distance Learning. I am very pleased that you have made this a theme of this meeting, because technical and vocational education and training, or TVET, is where the action must be nowadays. You have the considerable challenge of striking a balance between the development of higher education, which is important, and the expansion of TVET, which is even more important because it affects the lives of more people. // First I shall make some general remarks about learning, development and technology. Second, I shall talk about the evolution of TVET. Third, I shall describe what COL has been doing with you to help the development of TVET in the Pacific. Fourth, I shall talk about the resources for this work and express my thanks to those countries that support COL's work and urge those that are not yet on board to join those that are. // Finally, I shall note some of the other things that we are doing together, including the Virtual University for Small States of the Commonwealth, a concept which you and your predecessors launched back in 2000 and reinforced at the Edinburgh meeting of Commonwealth Ministers of Education in 2003.