20 March 2023, 15:00 CET - 20 March 2023, 16:30 CET

Africa's development highly relies on higher education and research systems that play a key role in knowledge-based economic growth strategies. The HAQAA initiative – Harmonisation, Accreditation and Quality Assurance in African Higher Education - was conceived in 2014 as an EU cooperation project with Africa based on the idea that “Higher education” has a particularly important role to play in enhancing citizenship and democratic values as well as providing a country with the skilled workers, managers and administrators that will foster sustainable development and encourage the trade and investment needed.

Alongside several other important EU programmes and initiatives in Africa such as the Intra-Africa mobility scheme, collaborative capacity building projects for the higher education sector under Erasmus+, support to the development of an Africa continental qualifications framework and the Tuning Africa initiative, which supported the enhancement and alignment of learning outcomes of study programmes, HAQAA has been focusing on developing quality standards for higher education in Africa, applied by national regulatory bodies, regional communities and higher education institutions. It has done this by building constructive, cross regional and cross-linguistic communities of practice in the higher education sector. It has also accompanied the Africa Union Commission in their ambitious objectives for higher education under the CESA 2025 framework. Activities have ranged from developing and promoting African reference tools for quality, to training and external assessment of institutions and QA bodies, policy dialogue/studies related to regional integration processes, recognition, and data collection for education policy.

Practical information
When
Monday 20 March 2023, 15:00 CET - Monday 20 March 2023, 16:30 CET
Where
InfoPoint and Webex Meetings
Languages
English, French
Organisers
International Partnerships InfoPoint
Description
InfoPoint conference: Advancing African Continental Integration in Higher education
InfoPoint conference: Advancing African Continental Integration in Higher education: building trust through better quality
This webinar intends to showcase the results of HAQAA to date and stimulate a discussion with EU Delegations, services and interested parties around the impacts of the initiative, specifically as they relate to the higher education sector and how it underpins development and objectives in other sectors (research and innovation, skills, employment, sustainability, etc).

The event will begin with a concise presentation of the main achievements of HAQAA2 (the second phase), prepared by the Implementing Team. This will be followed by two testimonials/case studies of primary beneficiaries and implementing partners: A national quality assurance agency which regulates the higher education sector and a higher education institution which has participated in training and dissemination activities (Mali).

The event will then open a dialogue with participants, structured around these questions: How does HAQAA relate to other important country and regional level investments in Africa (for research, trade, etc) and how it can it be further leveraged going forward, given that a third phase is announced? How can the important of results of HAQAA be best communicated beyond the higher education sector? What has been exemplary of the HAQAA implementation approach and what lessons can be learned for stimulating Africa continental cooperation for development?

Speakers
Deirdre Lennan, Head of Human Development Sector, INTPA A2 - Regional and Multi-Country Programmes for Africa
Claire Herrmann, Policy Officer, International Cooperation, DG EAC
Elizabeth Colucci, Director of Global Projects, OBREAL Global (HAQAA2 Coordinator)
Olusola Oyewole, Secretary General, Association of African Universities (AAU)
Maria Luisa Chicote, President, National Council for Quality Evaluation of Higher Education, CNAQ, Mozambique
Fatoumata Keita, Professor, English Department, Université des Lettres et des Sciences Humaines de Bamako/Focal point quality assurance, Mali

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