Dear colleagues,
The National Agency for Higher Education Quality Assurance (hereafter — NAQA) would like to express its utmost respect to you, our esteemed colleagues.
We are reaching out to you as your agency is on the list in the Order of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, dated 10 July 2019, No. 554-r (updated on 20.01.2023) (hereafter referred to as “the Order”). Our legislation advocates an open, transparent, and equitable quality assurance system. Therefore, decisions made by your agency along with the other agencies listed in the Order are unequivocally and unconditionally recognized and hold the same power as NAQA’s decisions.
The liberalization of Higher Education Quality Assurance legislation in Ukraine is based on the assumption that agencies conducting cross-border accreditations in Ukraine will follow:
1). EQAR’s key considerations for cross-border QA namely:
- contacting the local QA agency, and informing itself of previous external QA reports and decisions concerning the institution.
- any national requirements or criteria should be addressed in the structuring and contents of the report to ensure its recognition if the process is part of the national mandatory QA.
- the agency should ensure the publication of and access to the full report.
- the QA agency and the peer-review experts should be sensitive to cultural and contextual differences.
2). Bucharest Communiqué of the Conference of European Ministers Responsible for Higher Education 2012: “We will allow EQAR-registered agencies to perform their activities across the EHEA, while complying with national requirements”.
3). Yerevan Ministerial Communiqué 2015: “to enable our higher education institutions to use a suitable EQAR registered agency for their external quality assurance process, respecting the national arrangements for the decision making on QA outcomes”.
4). Rome Ministerial Communiqué 2020: “…we commit to removing the remaining obstacles, including those related to the cross-border operation of EQAR registered agencies…”
NAQA appreciates the efforts of all partners who foster transparent and enduring dialogue, and follow international documents, agreements and respect the national agency, system and legislation.
However, it has come to our attention that some EQAR-registered agencies listed in the Order do not contact NAQA prior to engaging in cross-border activities and do not consider Ukrainian legislation or national higher education standards. This issue poses a tangible threat to the quality of higher education in Ukraine and raises concerns regarding the credibility of cross-border QA.
During the recent Supporting European QA Agencies in meeting the ESG (SEQA-ESG) 2 Erasmus+ project meeting, NAQA highlighted this concern and received a recommendation from the head representatives of ENQA and EQAR as well as HAKA and ZEvA experts and agreed to joint efforts.
Thus, we wish to underscore our willingness and openness to collaborate with you in all matters concerning Ukrainian higher education quality assurance legislation, national accreditation procedures, and standards. NAQA has also provided comprehensive information on its website in English (https://en.naqa.gov.ua/?page_id=1761).
Furthermore, NAQA is always available for consultations and agency-to-agency meetings. NAQA also upon request can help in searching Ukrainian QA experts.
We reiterate our respect for your organization, its procedures, and your legislation.
As partners, we kindly request that you contact NAQA prior to undertaking any cross-border activities in Ukraine via email at international@naqa.gov.ua.
This letter is approved unanimously by NAQA Board (Board Meeting Minutes of 26.03.2024 No. 7 (57)).