1. Promoting an Internal Quality Culture in Mozambican Universities
Prof. Doutor Jeffy Mukora
8th ICQAHEA: September 2016
Windhoek, Namibia

2. Outline of the Presentation
The Development of Higher Education in Mozambique
The Establishment of a National System of Accreditation Evaluation and Quality Assurance of higher education (SINAQES)
The Establishment of a National Quality Council in Higher Education (CNAQ)
What is Quality Promotion and what is Quality Culture?
How Does CNAQ Promote Quality Culture?

3. The Development of Higher Education in Mozambique
Mozambique went through three stages in its history, all with some bearing on how the QA system was established
The Colonial Period from the 1960s to independence
The socialist period from independence in 1975 to 1986
the multi-party democracy and free market phase covering the period from 1986 to date

4. The Establishment of a National System of Accreditation Evaluation and Quality Assurance of higher education (SINAQES)
In Mozambique the government had to deal urgently with a multiplicity of challenges affecting higher education
In 2007, Mozambique introduced the National System of Accreditation Evaluation and Quality Assurance of higher education (SINAQES) as a system of standards, procedures and mechanisms to regulate higher education quality and ensure the delivery of quality services from all actors and stakeholders

5. SINAQES
SINAQES covers three main domains referred as ‘sub-systems’, namely
the sub-system of self-evaluation to be undertaken by individual institutions
the sub-system of external evaluation
the sub-system of institutional and programme accreditation under the responsibility of CNAQ

6. SINAQES SINAQES goals are:
to develop and promote the principles and culture of consistent quality of services provided by institutions of higher education
to identify, develop and implement standards and quality indicators;
 to inform society about the quality of teaching in HEIs
to assist in identifying problems in higher education and to outline mechanisms and policy proposals for their resolution
to contribute to the integration of Mozambican higher education with the region and the world

7. SINAQES
SINAQES
offers standards, mechanisms and procedures to be used by tertiary institutions for self-evaluation, and for external review, with a view to accreditation or re-accreditation
provides general guidelines for the execution of these tasks, including key evaluation indicators as well as principles for self-assessment, namely participation of stakeholders, transparency, regularity, dissemination, commitment from the institutional management, reliable and valid information and effective utilization of the results
It makes programme and institutional evaluation a legal requirement

8. The National Council on Quality Assurance in Higher Education: its mandate
The National Council on Quality Assurance in Higher Education (CNAQ) was established in 2007 as SINAQES' implementing agency with the following mandate
To approve the regulations for assessment and accreditation and to submit them to the higher education minister for approval
To approve the technical standards, guidelines, instructions, procedures and mechanisms of evaluation and accreditation in consultation with HEIs and other stakeholders;
To carry out external evaluations and accredit programmes in higher education

9. The National Council on Quality Assurance in Higher Education: its mandate
The National Council on Quality Assurance in Higher Education (CNAQ) was established in 2007 as SINAQES' implementing agency with the following mandate
To define and approve SINAQES strategies, programmes and operational plans;
To submit its own procedures and rules of operation to the higher education minister for approval; and
To promote quality in higher education in collaboration with similar institutions in the world.

10. The National Council on Quality Assurance in Higher Education: its mandate
CNAQ is thus the body responsible for the interpretation and implementation of SINAQES and as such accountable to the minister responsible for higher education.
It has been entrusted with the task of ensuring the harmonization, cohesion and credibility of the National Accreditation and Quality Assurance System.

11. What is Quality Culture and How Does CNAQ Promote Quality Culture?
The notion of culture is understood here as comprising two distinct sets of elements:
“a cultural/psychological element of shared values, beliefs, expectations and commitments toward quality” and
“a structural/ managerial element with defined processes that enhance quality and aim at coordinating effort” (EUA 2006, 10).

12. What is Quality Culture and How Does CNAQ Promote Quality Culture?

13. Promotion of institutional QA culture
‘As a set of advocacy, dissemination and research activities that have as their main goal the infusion of an ethos of quality in the three core functions of higher education, namely teaching and learning, research, and community engagement, including the development of a greater understanding of the different elements of quality among higher education stakeholders’

14. Promotion of institutional QA culture, cont
Thus quality promotion in the core functions of institutions can include:
Developing good practice guides on various issues;
Promoting programmes to improve teaching and learning;
Promoting discussion and awareness of QA issues among those who are formally responsible for this function at their institutions;
Training in QA in institutions (self-evaluation, institutional audits, report writing, etc.);
Promoting student involvement in quality issues; and
Promoting networking opportunities in QA.

15. How Does CNAQ Promote Quality Culture?
Dialogue between HEI and CNAQ
Monitoring
Technical Assistance
Training Internal and External Quality Assessors
International activities: accreditation procedures, projects and initiatives that brings new views into the agency
Continuous measuring of quality and use of results
Not punitive but developmental
Recognition of diversity between and within institutions

16. Challenges of Promoting a Quality Culture
Developing expertise and professional capacity are the most important challenges facing the national QA agency and institutional QA units. These manifest themselves in three ways:
insufficient numbers of qualified and professionally trained staff at the agency to lead and manage QA processes with confidence and integrity across systems, institutions and programs
shortage of academic staff in HEIs with knowledge and experience in developing suitable instruments and conducting self-evaluations and peer review; and
strain on the small pool of staff in institutional QA units who need to support both their own internal quality systems as well as external quality assurance processes required by the national agency.
Financial challenges

17. Prof. Doutor Jeffy Mukora
Fim
Muito obrigado pela atenção dispensada
Prof. Doutor Jeffy Mukora
Namibia
Setembro de 2016