EUROPE-AFRICA QUALITY CONNECT: BUILDING INSTITUTIONAL Capacity THROUGH PARTNERSHIP PROJECT RESULTS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS With the support of the Erasmus Mundus programme of the European Commission Copyright 2012 © by the European University Association All rights reserved. This information may be freely used and copied for non-commercial purposes, provided that the source is acknowledged (©European University Association). Additional copies of this publication are available for 10 Euro per copy. European University Association asbl Avenue de l’Yser 24 1040 Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32-2 230 55 44 Fax: +32-2 230 57 51 A free electronic version of this report is available through www.eua.be With the support of the Erasmus Mundus Programme of the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein. With the support of IEP IEP EUA-Institutional Evaluation Programme ISBN: 9789078997344 EUROPE-AFRICA QUALITY CONNECT: BUILDING INSTITUTIONAL Capacity THROUGH PARTNERSHIP PROJECT RESULTS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS EUROPE-AFRICA QUALITY CONNECT: BUILDING INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY THROUGH PARTNERSHIP 4 EUROPE-AFRICA QUALITY CONNECT: BUILDING INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY THROUGH PARTNERSHIP TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword and acknowledgements 6 Executive summary 7 I. Introduction 9 II. The project’s policy background 11 III. The IEP approach and its adaptation to the different African contexts 16 IV. Institutional evaluations in Africa: practical and methodological challenges 19 V. The evaluation reports: main themes 24 VI. Concluding remarks and recommendations for future directions 30 VII. References 32 VIII. Annex: teams of experts 34 5 EUROPE-AFRICA QUALITY CONNECT: BUILDING INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY THROUGH PARTNERSHIP FOREWORD AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report analyses the results of QA Connect, a project between EUA and AAU and reinforce the important role co-funded by the Erasmus Mundus Programme and that both associations have to play in fostering Europe- developed by a consortium that included the Association Africa university collaboration. of African Universities (AAU), the European University Association (EUA), the Irish Universities Quality Board We are deeply grateful to the five universities that (IUQB) and the University of Aveiro (UA), Portugal, in have agreed to participate in this pilot project. They partnership with the African Chapter of the Erasmus demonstrated their commitment to quality and courage Mundus Alumni Association. in undertaking a process that was new to them. They are: Ahmadu Bello University (Nigeria), Institute of Professional Five African universities participated in pilot evaluations Studies (Ghana), Kenyatta University (Kenya), University of that were based on the methodology of EUA’s Institutional Namibia (Namibia) and Université Omar Bongo (Republic Evaluation Programme (IEP). The institutions were located of Gabon). in different regions of Africa and were sufficiently dissimilar to provide good testing ground for the IEP approach. Our heartfelt thanks also go to the 25 experts who took The report analyses the adaptability of this evaluation part in the evaluation teams and invested considerable methodology to the African contexts and the pertinence time and effort in the exercise: studying the material of the themes addressed in the evaluation reports. provided by the universities; travelling, often long distances, in order to attend two workshops and visit the It is clear that these pilot evaluations have been very universities twice; and preparing the evaluation reports. successful. They were strongly endorsed by the universities that were evaluated as well as by their evaluation teams We particularly appreciated the responsiveness and and were found to be useful to institutional development, thoughtfulness of the feedback provided by all project particularly to their strategic capacity and the development participants – universities, experts and Advisory Board of their internal quality processes. members – on all aspects of these pilot evaluations. Without their contribution, this report could not have Participants in this pilot project strongly advised that AAU been as useful. takes responsibility for introducing a similar evaluation programme in Africa. The concluding chapter in this Finally, we wish to thank Andrée Sursock who was report examines how this can be done. responsible for drafting this report, and a number of colleagues from the AAU and EUA Secretariat who It is hoped that this report will contribute to designing provided important contributions and comments future steps for the development of quality assurance in during the revision process. We are particularly thankful Africa and that it will be useful to the African universities, to Professor Goolam Mohamedbhai for having taken their associations, their national quality assurance agencies the time to comment on draft versions of the report. as well as their governments at national and African levels. His discerning comments and questions contributed significantly to sharpening the argumentation and to the This project and the resulting report are further clarity of the presentation. achievements of an ongoing and fruitful collaboration Lesley Wilson Olugbemiro Jegede EUA Secretary General AAU Secretary General 6 EUROPE-AFRICA QUALITY CONNECT: BUILDING INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY THROUGH PARTNERSHIP EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. The report is the result of the project Europe-Africa and provided the universities with a range of Quality Connect: Building Institutional Capacity recommendations related to their core mission, through Partnership (QA Connect) that took place governance, management and strategic capacity. between October 2010 and September 2012. The project was a joint undertaking by the Association of 6. Feedback on the project was provided through African Universities (AAU), the European University two questionnaires and discussion during a Association (EUA), the Irish Universities Quality Board post-evaluation seminar that gathered together (IUQB) and the University of Aveiro (UA), Portugal, representatives of the five institutions, the five and co-funded by the Erasmus Mundus Programme evaluation teams, the project partners and the of the European Commission. The African Chapter project Advisory Board. By and large, the IEP of the Erasmus Mundus Alumni Association was an methodology was found to have worked very well. associated partner. 7. The difficulties and obstacles encountered during 2. Project partners agreed to use the methodology the course of this project were not unusual or specific of EUA’s Institutional Evaluation Programme (IEP) to the African contexts: IEP teams have faced them to test its suitability in different institutional and frequently, in Europe and elsewhere in the world, national contexts in Africa. The IEP’s evaluation particularly in places where QA processes are new. approach is conceived as a tool to support the In addition, most of these difficulties were apparent strategic development of universities, within their during the first visits and were addressed to ensure institutional and national contexts. Thus, IEP does the usefulness of the second visits and the reliability not evaluate on the basis of a uniform set of external of the evaluation reports. criteria. Instead, it examines each institution on its own terms and seeks to provide recommendations 8. The success factors that were identified were: in a supportive way. the emphasis on the self-evaluation phase; the composition of the evaluation teams, which 3. The IEP methodology was discussed with both the provided a range of backgrounds and experiences; project partners and the evaluation teams. It was the inclusion of mature and motivated students with found to be sufficiently open and flexible for use international experience; strong support from the in a variety of African contexts. The main change university leadership and a very good local liaison introduced to the IEP approach was in the bi- person; the two site visits and the inclusion of regional composition of the evaluation teams, which external stakeholders in the site visit meetings. included three African and two European members. 9. The universities were asked about the benefits that 4. Following a call for participation, AAU selected five they have derived from the evaluations. Some of universities with a view to optimising geographic the recommendations, which they highlighted as balance. These were: Ahmadu Bello University (Nigeria), being particularly useful, included suggestions for Institute of Professional Studies (Ghana), Kenyatta developing internal quality assurance processes University (Kenya), University of Namibia (Namibia) and involving external stakeholders in evaluating and Université Omar Bongo (Republic of Gabon). the university. Some universities noted that the project raised important questions that will be 5. The five institutions differed in aspects such as discussed at national level with the authorities. In size and relationship to the State. Beyond these addition, because the evaluations engage with differences, all were relatively young and have had to external stakeholders, they could have an impact on respond to increased demand for higher education national QA processes and address gaps in national in a context of very limited public resources. The data collection (e.g. regarding the higher education evaluation teams were aware of