The 18th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (18CCEM) was held in Pailles, Mauritius from 28-31 August 2012.
Delegations from thirty-nine Commonwealth countries met to reflect on the theme ‘Education in the Commonwealth: Bridging the Gap as We Accelerate Towards Achieving Internationally Agreed Goals’. They highlighted the need to set up a common platform for OER for harmonisation, ease of access, and the development and use of OER to provide quality teaching and learning for all.
Top 19 of the Mauritius Communiqué states: "Ministers stressed that ICT was vital to increasing access at all levels, hence improving the efficiency of the education system, but that technology should be driven by educational needs. They noted that while there was aplethora of initiatives for the development of Open Education Resources (OER), such as scientific publications, eBooks and journals, there was a need to set up a common platform for OER materials for harmonisation and ease of access. They further highlighted the need for a common framework for all open universities of the Commonwealth, especially those in small states. Quality assurance mechanisms should be strengthened to make them more relevant to the needs of stakeholders."
