Is a Global Convention on Recognition of Studies and Qualifications in Higher Education

Feasible?

Perspectives from Africa

Peter Okebukola and Juma Shabani

First Regional Experts’ Meeting, Nanjing

30-31 October, 2012

Purpose of the Study

The study was designed to seek the views of stakeholders in higher education in Africa on

• (a) the feasibility of a Global Convention on the recognition of studies and qualifications in higher education;

• (b) issues specific to Africa that should be reflected in the Global Convention; and

• (c) challenges encountered in the mutual recognition of qualifications

• Online survey

• Face-to-face interviews

Methodology

• Questionnaire approved by the Experts’ Group

Instrumentation

Country of Respondents

• Benin

• Burkina Faso

• Burundi

• Cameroon

• Ethiopia

• Ghana

• Ivory Coast

• Kenya

• Lesotho

• Mali

• Mauritius

• Namibia

• Niger

• Nigeria

• Senegal

• South Africa

• Zimbabwe

17 countries surveyed

Status of Respondents

Status No. Minister of Education/Higher Education

2

Head of National Quality Assurance Agency and Directors

9

Vice-Chancellor/Rector/Vice-Rector 10 Senior Ministry of Education officials 8 Senior Academics 11 Students 7 Others 2

TOTAL 49

FINDINGS

Do you favour the elaboration of a Global Convention on the recognition of studies and qualifications?

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Yes, Unreservedly Yes, but with provisos No

10

39

0

Sample Reasons for favouring the Global

Convention- UNRESERVEDLY

• Education has become global and there is need for a global convention that will bring together the common considerations of the various conventions and find common grounds on the areas of divergence

• Because it will ensure common currency and mobilities in our global village

• Current globalization and increasing acquisition of soft skills constantly creates the need for recognition of studies and qualifications across continental borders

• The dynamics and new trends in higher education, particularly the emergence of long distance, online and life-long education as well as the proliferation of private tertiary institutions demand a framework for regulation or control. There is need for harmonization and a need to have a system that will guide the recognition of certificates across borders.

• Different regions have different contexts and challenges - a global agreement may become so broad and generic that it has limited applicability

• A global convention can only be useful and be beneficial to all provided the regional conventions are operational - that is not the case at present.

• Global mobility frameworks would be a best step for a region like Africa where internal mobility is low.

• There must be room for variations in different systems • A global convention must also address regional and national

concerns. • It is important to ensure that regional conventions are

strengthened first and fully implemented before we can consider going global, so that the global convention can draw from the regional

Sample Reasons for favouring the Global Convention-

WITH PROVISOS

Issues specific to Africa to be reflected in the proposed Global Convention- 1

• The global convention should recognise indigenous knowledge in Africa and how this is part of the higher education curriculum and certification.

• The convention should have provisions which will not further encourage migration of African scholars out of Africa on the pretext of mobility. Africa loses, other regions gain.

• The role of national and regional qualifications frameworks must be foregrounded in the global convention especially the use of outcomes-based qualifications

• The global convention should practically and effectively address the underlying problems relating to socio-cultural difference in performance across regions in a way that will not negatively affect Africa.

Issues specific to Africa to be reflected in the proposed Global Convention- 1

• The global convention should give recognition to prior learning which emerging to be an important feature in African higher education

• The issue of integrated curriculum and quality teacher education in the university system should be addressed

• Quality assurance and continental accreditation mechanisms in technical and vocational skills development should be reflected in the global convention

• It should promote capacities of the African TVET researchers to contribute adequately to global knowledge production and innovation

• Linguistic and colonial influences in an inter-connected world should be reflected

• Harmonization of training curriculum should be well tackled; certification should also be globally unified.

Challenges encountered in mutual recognition of qualifications- 1

• Great disparity in types of qualifications, although the LMD reform will smooth out differences.

• Unwillingness of several states to recognise qualifications from some other specific states - for various reasons, including political ones.

• Lack of a proper coordinating and follow-up mechanism in implementing the convention.

• Lack of funds for implementing the Convention, e.g. in convening regular meetings.

Challenges encountered in mutual recognition of qualifications- 2

• The efficiency of quality assurance systems differs between more and less developed countries; not all countries have NQFS; not all regions have working regional qualifications frameworks.

• The qualifications in our region are not harmonised and as a result students are exposed to tests in order to enter some universities. Some countries do not recognise the qualifications from other countries.

• Differences in assessment and curricula prescriptions

Challenges encountered in mutual recognition of qualifications- 3

• With the influx of private institutions it is quite challenging for the accrediting board which also has the mandate to establish equivalences to sometimes judge the credibility of some certificates. the difference in the francophone and anglophone system also makes recognition of such certificates sometimes a bit challenging

• Issues of differences in the nomenclature of degrees and minimum curriculum standards

• Difficulties in maintaining a definitive academic standard among different countries and regions.

Challenges encountered in mutual recognition of qualifications- 4

• Language issues, poor ICT infrastructure, inequality in education development across Africa

• Different educational and qualification systems which are rooted in the colonial histories of the countries

• Different levels of training between countries pose a challenge of seamless transition from one country to the other. also the content per similar courses / programmes between countries are not given the same training weight, such that a student may need prerequisite training before starting the main programme.

• Increased brain drain to powerful countries; some countries not having adequate capacity to offer programmes at the required level and to evaluate qualifications leading to others not recognising qualifications from such countries.

Conclusion • The sample surveyed from Africa is largely

representative of countries and category of stakeholders in higher education in the region

• About a quarter unreservedly favour the establishment of a Global Convention and three quarters favour with provisos. None was in opposition.

• Interactions at the 5th ICQAHEA confirm optimism that the Global Convention will work

• Need to factor in the African issues in the proposed Convention for wide acceptability in the region.

Thank you