The Higher Education Council (HEC) will begin charging service fees for accreditation and qualification recognition, strengthen oversight of universities, and expand its institutional structure under newly approved government orders. Last week, Cabinet approved a Presidential Order governing the Higher Education Council and a Prime Minister’s Order determining the institution’s organisational structure. In an interview with The New Times, HEC Director General Edward Kadozi said the new orders introduce several reforms aimed at strengthening regulation of the higher education sector and positioning Rwanda as an international education hub. ALSO READ: HEC boss talks reforms poised to position Rwanda as higher education hub One of the key priorities is the promotion of internationalisation, which seeks to attract international students, faculty and researchers to Rwanda. Kadozi said the council aims to position the country as a competitive destination for higher education by strengthening collaboration and mobility across institutions. Another major change is the introduction of service fees for some services that HEC provides to higher learning institutions and the public. According to Kadozi, many regulatory bodies globally require universities to pay for services such as institutional establishment and academic programme accreditation. In Rwanda, however, the government has traditionally covered these costs. ALSO READ: What you need to know about the new digital equivalence system “Reviewing and assessing the worthiness of a university or an academic programme requires significant resources,” he said. Kadozi noted that accrediting a new academic programme costs an average of about Rwf25 million, while accrediting a university can cost roughly twice as much. “Previously, such expenses were paid by the government treasury. Under the new approach, universities and higher learning institutions will contribute to these costs,” he said. The fees will also apply to services such as the equivalence and recognition of academic qualifications. Kadozi said the move is partly driven by the cost of delivering services such as accreditation, qualification verification and digitalisation initiatives aimed at improving service delivery. “The new framework also changes the way HEC conducts accreditation and post-accreditation processes,” he said. ALSO READ: HEC equivalence processing to go digital Previously, the council relied mainly on academic experts to review programmes. Under the new approach, industry experts will also be involved to ensure academic programmes remain relevant to labour market needs. “Moving forward, we will be bringing both academic and industry experts to assess programmes and provide recommendations,” Kadozi said. He added that engaging such experts increases the cost of the process, with the new service fees expected to partly support these evaluations. Stronger monitoring of universities The new orders also strengthen HEC’s role in monitoring the performance of higher learning institutions to ensure quality education and improved learning outcomes. Kadozi said the council will begin assessing the performance of all higher learning institutions using a range of indicators. The results, he noted, will help inform policy decisions and guide students and parents when choosing universities. “This will increase transparency, improve quality and promote excellence in higher education,” he said. The orders are also expected to streamline HEC’s mandate by transferring the management of local student bursaries and study loans to universities, in collaboration with the Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD). HEC will retain responsibility only for bursaries and study loans for international students. “This will reduce lengthy bureaucratic processes in processing bursary loans for local students and reduce the administrative burden on HEC, allowing the council to focus on its core regulatory functions,” Kadozi said. Expanded institutional structure The new Prime Minister’s Order also expands HEC’s institutional structure. Kadozi said the council’s staffing has increased significantly from about 42 employees to 98 to strengthen its technical capacity. “We deal with universities and highly technical matters, so we require staff with strong expertise,” he said. The increase is also linked to ongoing efforts to digitalise HEC operations and strengthen collaboration with higher learning institutions. Previously, the council operated mainly through general education and polytechnic departments, with a single division responsible for accreditation and quality assurance. Under the new structure, the General Education Department will have two divisions: one responsible for accreditation and another for quality enhancement. Two new departments have also been introduced. The Department of Academic Recognition and Internationalisation will oversee the equivalence division, as well as divisions responsible for internationalisation and student welfare. Another department, Digitalisation and Research will include divisions responsible for digitalisation and research and innovation. Implementation of the new structure will begin after the orders are officially gazetted. Kadozi said HEC is working with the Prime Minister’s Office to ensure the orders are published soon. “These are some of the key reforms aimed at positioning Rwanda as an education hub,” he said. He added that additional initiatives will include strengthening accreditation and quality assurance frameworks, enhancing career guidance to support the transition from academia to industry, and establishing higher education subsector working groups to support policy dialogue and feedback in the sector.
