Transforming India's Education Landscape: National Stakeholder Consultation on Business Plan 2030
New Delhi, 20 November 2025
A “National Stakeholder Consultation” on the Business Plan 2030 for Vocationalisation of Open Schooling in India was organised by the Commonwealth of Learning through its Asia regional centre, the Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (COL-CEMCA), in partnership with the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) on 20 November 2025. The event was attended by around 90 individuals representing various partners and stakeholders.
The consultation event was built upon the “Capacity Building” and “Envisioning” workshops organised by COL-CEMCA and NIOS, respectively in May and September 2025. A three-day capacity-building workshop from 15-17 May 2025, at Noida, brought together over 70 vocational educators from across India. One of the main goals was to equip teachers with digital tools, instructional design expertise, and 21st century teaching techniques. The workshop featured sessions on NEP 2020, AI and ICT tools, communication skills, and innovative instructional methods. A report outlining key outcomes and recommendations to enhance the quality of vocational education at the school level was produced.
That gave way to an envisioning workshop at the NIOS head office on 2 September 2025, where COL-CEMCA and NIOS jointly drafted a vision statement and created a roadmap, committing to vocationalising education for 1-1.5 crore people in India. By 2030, the Open School education system aims to set a benchmark for scalable, equitable, and technology-powered vocational education, empowering learners, especially NEET and SEDG, with industry-aligned skills for meaningful livelihoods, global placements, and lifelong growth.
Dr B. Shadrach, Director, COL-CEMCA, delivered the welcome address and set the goal for the meeting, which was to create a cohesive national ecosystem for vocational and skill education, leveraging technology, industry partnerships, and State Open Schools. He emphasised that the meeting ensures a participatory approach to the business planning exercise, involving all stakeholders in the open school ecosystem, to make the scale-up plan realistic, measurable, and achievable through collective participation and input.
Professor Akhilesh Mishra, Chairman, National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), highlighted that this consultation marks a significant step towards strengthening vocational education in open schooling. Building upon the National Education Policy 2020 emphasising flexible learning pathways and competency-based curricula, He emphasised NIOS’s aims to expand vocational enrollment from 40,000 to 4 million learners by 2030. He emphasised the power of 'Togetherness' in ensuring every learner, regardless of geography or background, has access to quality skill education and pathways to dignified livelihoods.
Addressing as the Guest of Honour, Professor Peter Scott, President and CEO of the Commonwealth of Learning, expressed his excitement in collaborating with India on open schooling initiatives. He highlighted that with 56 member Nations, the Commonwealth of Learning works to advance education through open and distance learning. Professor Scott also acknowledged that India's open schooling system is a model for the world, with 18 open universities. While highlighting the significant challenge of access to education and employment, he also expressed that digital technology offers opportunities for scaling and inclusion. Saying that “India has huge superpowers and opportunities to teach the world a lot and help make it a better place,” he expressed his commitment to working together to drive progress in open schooling and explore ways to include all young people, especially those who are excluded. He summed up his presence as an effort to “bring the voice of all of the world to India, and hear the voice of India for the rest of the world.
Dr T N Giri, Director, Vocational Education, National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), called the day a significant milestone in advancing the National Education Policy 2020 and the National Credit Framework. He said the discussions and insights shared will reinforce our commitment to vocational education as a national imperative, empowering millions of young learners, especially those from socio-economic disadvantaged backgrounds and those not in education, employment, or training.
Professor N S Kalsi, Former Chairperson, NCVET and Principal Consultant, COL-CEMCA, spoke on the “Proposed approach for Vocationalisation of Open Schooling in India as aligned to the NCF SE, NSQF and NCrF” and set the strategic context & the national challenge, along with the framework alignment and guiding principles. While presenting the challenges, he also highlighted the need to provide market-relevant education, hands-on experience, and essential skills like workplace readiness, teamwork, and digital literacy. He also presented the six-pillar implementation framework to
- NCF-SE-Aligned Curriculum Architecture
- NCrF-Enabled Credit Pathways & Life-long Learning
- NSQF-Aligned Vocational & Skill Qualifications
- Blended Learning Delivery
- Industry and Workforce Linkages
- Quality Assurance & Recognition
He called to reimagine the open schooling “not as an alternative pathway, but as a national highway.” He reiterated that by leveraging open schooling, we can create a more inclusive and effective education system that prepares students for the workforce and beyond.
Ms. Hena Usman, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India, emphasised that vocationalisation of open schooling requires structural changes and institutional reforms. She highlighted the need to upgrade content to align with industry needs, design co-curricular activities to meet industrial requirements, and foster industry partnerships for co-creation of curriculum, joint assessments, and on-the-job training. As a way forward, she emphasised leveraging digital infrastructure like NDEAR and DIKSHA, enabling scalability and transparency.
Discussions were also held around Best Practices of Open Schooling in India and Challenges of Vocationalisation; Institutional and Industry Linkages for Open Schooling in India; and Online Technologies and Blended Learning Opportunities for Open Schooling and Vocationalisation of Open Schooling in India.
Mr Mrutyunjay Behera, Economic Advisor, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India, India’s special remark was read out by Mr Satyam Bharti, Deputy Director (DL), Ministry of Education, Government of India. Mr Behera expressed the significance of integrating vocational education with open schooling to transform the educational and professional trajectories of millions of learners, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Stating that the outcome of the meeting were “actionable pathways that will enable India’s open schooling to reach a million more learners,” he emphasised the need for collaboration among educational institutions, industry partners, and civil society to an inclusive, equitable, and future-ready education ecosystem.
As a way forward, Professor Peter Scott commended the strategy which were discussed and called for a collective effort to overcome obstacles and drive progress. “We look forward to working with you to get that way forward delivered for all of the learners of India,” he remarked.
The event concluded with a vote of thanks from Dr B. Shadrach, emphasising the collective effort needed to transform India's education landscape and create a brighter future for all learners.
