During the UNESCO Digital Learning Week in early September this year, the "Guidance for generative AI in education and research" was officially released to not only provide the guildlines of using AI, but also propose on regulations on the use of Artificial intelligence (AI). AI is transforming all aspects of our societies, including higher education. AI has the potential to enhance human capacity, promote educational innovation, and ensure sustainable development, but it also poses significant challenges and risks for the quality, equity and academic integrity of higher education. Therefore, it is crucial to steer AI innovation towards the common good of humanity and to empower teachers and learners to harness the benefits of AI for teaching and learning.

The 2023 International Institute of Online Education (IIOE) Global Partners Summit aims to bring together education ministers, policy-makers, researchers, practitioners, and enterprises from around the world to discuss the opportunities and challenges of AI for higher education. The meeting will address topics such as: How does AI impact higher education governance and policies on the national and institutional level? How will teacher professional development change and evolve with challenges and development of AI technologies? The meeting will also showcase some of the best practices and innovative examples of using AI in higher education from different regions and contexts, by different HEIs and market providers.

Finally, the meeting will release a white paper on the integration of AI and higher education. This meeting will provide a platform for dialogue, collaboration and networking among the participants. Well-rounded participation and discussions from diverse perspectives will ensure that the meeting produces a constructive and inclusive white paper.

05 Some Speakers

Former Assistant Director-General for Priority Africa and External Relations – ADG/PAX

Mr. Firmin Edouard Matoko, is the former Assistant Director-general of the Africa Department and External Relations of UNESCO. Prior, he was Director of the UNESCO Liaison Office with the African Union (AU) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), as well as UNESCO Representative to Ethiopia. He served as Director in Quito and Bamako UNESCO Cluster Offices and as Chief of the Education for Peace, Human Rights and Democracy Section, in the Division for the Promotion of Quality education of the Education Sector as well as Senior Programme Specialist of the Culture of peace National Programmes Unit in UNESCO’s Paris headquarters.

Professor. Dragan Gasevic is a Distinguished Professor of Learning Analytics in the School of Information Technology at Monash University and Director of the Centre for Learning Analytics (CoLAM) at Monash University. He has held several honorary professorships and industry fellowships in Asia, Australia, Europe and North America. The EU-funded SHEILA project, which he leads, won the Best Research Project of the Year award (2019) from the Association for Learning Technology. In 2022, he received the highest honorary Lifetime Membership award from the Association for Learning Analytics Research (SoLAR) and was named a Distinguished Member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), the world's largest computer association.

IEEE Fellow, Academician from the Chinese Academy of Engineering

Professor Zheng Nanning was the director of the Institute of Artificial Intelligence of Xi 'an Jiaotong University, and the President of Xi 'an Jiaotong University. Professor Zheng has long been engaged in the research of applied basic theory and engineering technology in the fields of pattern recognition, machine vision, and image processing. He has presided over and completed a number of important scientific research projects of the National Science and Technology Research and the National Natural Science Foundation. He has won two second prizes of National Science and Technology Progress, one second prize and one fourth prize for National Technology invention, and many awards such as Hong Kong Ho Liang Ho Li Science and Technology Progress Award. In November 2005, he was elected IEEE Fellow of the International Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers.

Vice Chancellor, Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria

Professor Kabir Bala graduated with B.Sc. (Hons) Building in 1985 from the Department of Building, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. He joined the services of ABU, at the Department of Building in 1987. He obtained the Master of Science in Building Services in 1990, Masters in Business Administration in 1998 and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Construction Management in 2001, all from Ahmadu Bello University. Prof. Kabir Bala was appointed as the 12th Substantive Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University in March 2020. In February, 2013, Prof. Bala was appointed as Chairman of the Board of Council of Registered Builders of Nigeria (CORBON), and in October 2013, He was appointed as a Member of the Board of the National Universities Commission, (NUC), both by the President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Prof. Kabir Bala has been an External Assessor for Professorial appointments of many academics, for many universities in Nigeria.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and International) of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM)

Prof. Dr. Ismi Arif Ismail is the UPM Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and International) for a period of three years, effective from April 25, 2022, until April 24, 2025. Prof. Dr. Ismi Arif Ismail, 51, holds a PhD (Continuing Education) from the University of Warwick, United Kingdom, a Master's in Extension Education, UPM, and a Bachelor of Education with Honours (Teaching English as a Second Language - TESL) from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. He specialises in the areas of extension and continuing education, teaching and learning, youth development, leadership and human resource development. Prof. Dr. Ismi has served in UPM for over 22 years. He started his career as Lecturer in the Department of Professional Development and Continuing Education in 2000 before being appointed as Senior Lecturer in 2008, Associate Professor in 2012 and Professor in 2020. Prof. Dr. Ismi is the Executive Editor of the Asia-Pacific Journal of Youth Studies (formerly known as the Malaysian Journal of Youth Studies) and a member of the SAGE Open Editorial Council and Asian Council of Science Editors. Prof. Dr. Ismi is also a think tank for the Institute for Youth Research Malaysia (IYRES), Ministry of Youth and Sports, Malaysia. He is one of the expert panels that produced the Malaysian Youth Policy 2015-2035 and the Malaysian Youth Index since 2011. In the international arena, Prof. Dr. Ismi is actively involved in consultation activities with the Commonwealth Youth Secretariat, London, Commonwealth Higher Education Youth Work Consortium, UNESCO and consulting firms such as Khazanah Research Institute, McKinsey Company, Ernst Young and Hay Group.