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Professor Amon Murwira

Auxilia Katongomara, Chronicle Reporter
CABINET has approved the Zimbabwe National Qualifications Framework (ZNQF) aimed at reforming the country’s higher education system by exempting courses for students with prior qualifications from polytechnics upon enrolment at universities.

The ZNQF will see students from polytechnics being exempted from some courses upon enrolment at university and bring uniformity to degree programmes offered at institutions of higher learning.

There had been concern from holders of qualifications from teachers’ colleges and polytechnics that they were being disregarded by universities.

Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development, Professor Amon Murwira told Chronicle yesterday that the new policy had received Cabinet’s nod.

“The Zimbabwe National Qualifications Framework was approved by Cabinet two weeks ago and it would soon be available to all stakeholders for adoption,” said Prof Murwira.

The governance of the ZNQF is through the Ministries of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development and the Primary and Secondary Education Ministry.

According to the policy document, the ZNQF will be implemented by regulatory authorities namely, the Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council, Higher Education Examinations Council (HEXCO) and Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education (Zimche).

“The ZNQF enables the development of standardised qualifications through the establishment of minimum bodies of knowledge thus enhancing transparency to institutions, learners and employers.”

“Through this framework, labour market needs will be better matched with the outputs from our education system,” reads the document.

The ZNQF integrates education and training into a unified structure of qualifications recognised locally and internationally.

It also seeks to provide a mechanism to relate basic, tertiary and higher education frameworks to each other in a manner that recognises prior learning and mobility of learners and graduates.

“The ZNQF regulatory authorities, ZIMSEC, HEXCO and ZIMCHE, in the implementation of this framework shall provide a variety of routes to qualifications,   provide a SADC regionally compliant national basic, tertiary and higher education quality assurance system; provide and ensure policy coherence across different ministries and facilitate adequate involvement of stakeholders,” reads part of the policy document.

“These regulatory authorities shall facilitate the mobility and progression of information within education, training and career pathways, provide for a fair assessment system, which measures achievements against clearly stated national standards.”
– @AuxiliaK