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On 20 February 2019, the Notre Dame University- Louaizeh (NDU) launched its UNESCO Chair on Open Educational Resources (OER) for Access and Success, in presence of UNESCO Beirut’s Director Dr Hamed al Hamami and UNESCO Beirut’s Programme Specialist for Communication and Information Mr George Awad.

The term “Open Educational Resources” (OERs) was created at UNESCO’s 2002 Forum on the Impact of Open Courseware for Higher Education in Developing Countries to describe a new global phenomenon of openly sharing educational resources in 2002. OER are teaching, learning and research materials in any medium – digital or otherwise – that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions. Since 2002, OER has increasingly been recognized by the international community as an innovative tool for meeting the challenges of providing lifelong learning opportunities for learners from diverse levels and modes of education worldwide.

Realizing the importance of OER in achieving SDG4 and expanding students’ access to education and learning opportunities, NDU has started in 2014 its efforts to create a UNESCO Chair on OER, based at the university but serving the broader MENA region.

As to George Awad, CI Programme Specialist at UNESCO Beirut, he introduced the public to OER and to UNESCO Chairs. Awad said: “Launched in 1992, the UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs Programme, which involves 792 institutions in over 116 countries, promotes international inter-university cooperation and networking to enhance institutional capacities through knowledge sharing and collaborative work. The programme supports the establishment of UNESCO Chairs and UNITWIN Networks in key priority areas related to UNESCO’s fields of competence – i.e. in education, the natural and social sciences, culture and communication”.