Ghana poised to be regional hub for higher education

Professor Salifu Mohammed, former Executive Director of Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC), says the country is working hard to be a regional hub for higher education.

He said the country was working on a qualification framework for higher institutions to make the system credible and inspire confidence within the sub-region.

Prof Mohammaed said this in Accra at the closing ceremony of a five-day workshop organised by the GTEC in collaboration with the African Continental Qualifications Framework (ACQF-II).

The ACQF-II is a project of the African-European Union partnership, implemented by the European Training Foundation, in collaboration with countries, regions, and the African Union Commission.

The workshop brought together experts from more than 15 agencies and commissions in the education sector. Three comprehensive national policy documents are to be developed under the project to harmonise educational qualifications in the country.

They are the national qualification framework for all levels and sub-sectors of education and training; the recognition of prior learning for mainly the informal sector; and the credit accumulation and transfer system mainly for students.

The documents are to facilitate international recognition of qualifications by educational institutions and companies, enhance job mobility, provide access to decent jobs, and establish quality assurance and standards. It would also ensure coherence and career progression, both within and outside the country.

Tertiary-level students would also be able to transfer their credit hours from one institution to another within and outside the country to enable them to continue their education.

Prof Mohammed said the expectation of the framework was to make it nationally relevant and globally benchmarked to be fit for purpose.

He said it was necessary for the country to develop qualifications that would be in line with national priorities, adding, “We need to leverage education for our national development.”

The Professor said the tertiary institutions in the country have done well in attracting foreign students and stated the need to continue with the feat to be relevant globally.

“We are working to ensure that whoever we collaborate with across the sub-region and beyond will have a degree acceptable to all,” he said.

He said the country had one year to finish with the framework before implementation, expressing optimism that the framework must speak to the development needs of the country.

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