The creation of a regional qualifications framework (RQF) is no longer an academic debate, but an idea that is taking form.
This is according to Joe Samuels, who spoke at the fifth Q-Africa conference co-hosted by the South Africa Qualifications Authority (Saqa) and the German Qualifications Federation in Johannesburg this month. The conference drew participants from Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Ghana, Kenya and New Zealand.
Samuels, Saqa’s head of standard-setting and development, also serves on a technical committee driving the formation of an RQF. Saqa is a statutory body charged with overseeing the development and implementation of the National Qualifications Frameworks (NQF) for South Africa.
Samuels says an RQF will facilitate the mobility of learners and workers within southern Africa. Once established, it will hold immense benefits. For instance, there will be ‘trust in terms of quality of training that is being provided in the region,” Samuels says. ‘It will give a better understanding of systems in other countries, as well as how to share the expertise across the region”.
Samuels says with an improved quality of skills, knowledge and values in the region, Africa will have a competitive edge in the global educational arena. ‘Europe has, through the European Qualifications Framework, stated its intention of becoming the world-quality reference for education and training by 2010.”
To obviate a problem where ‘more assertive regions” dominate and impose their education models on the relatively poor ones, each southern African country will have to set up a national qualifications framework committee. The national groups will meet and focus on areas of commonality to fashion out an acceptable framework for the region. In 2005, the technical committee will set up an agency whose task will be to refine concept documents and work towards establishing a fully operational RQF by 2010.
The southern African RQF will also work to improve the general standard of skills, knowledge and values; ensure that there is greater mobility of skills and knowledge; help achieve more justice and equity for previously disadvantaged people; and support greater cooperation and unity of purpose between countries.
The conference met against the backdrop of the Pan-African Parliament’s inaugural session at the same venue in Midrand. The RQF initiative faces similar challenges to the new parliament, making them allies who will hopefully cooperate with each other.