Education Agency Puts Heavy Hand on Unruly Colleges

Half-a-dozen private higher learning institutions have been subject to regulatory action from the federal institution in charge of overseeing higher education quality in the country.

The Higher Education Relevance & Quality Agency (HERQA), under Andualem Admassie (PhD), has imposed measures ranging from terminating new enrolment to the closure of campuses and even the dismissal of students at six private colleges, one of which is in Addis Abeba. The institutions are being subjected to the decision for violating accreditation criteria by offering fields they are not allowed to teach; opening campuses without accreditation; enrolling unqualified students; mishandling files; and in one case, not having any accreditation at all, officials at the Agency claim.

The colleges include Zemen Postgraduate and Rada colleges in Dessie; Siphen College in Addis Abeba; Global Bridge College in Wolaita Sodo; Paradise Valley College in Dilla; and, Great Land College in Nekemte. Siphen is the lone college from the capital as well as the only one that has no accreditation from the Agency.

Established in 2003, the Agency has mandates to take actions when its officials discover non-compliance with laws, regulations, or policies enacted by the Ministry of Science & Higher Education.

The Agency discovered the violations through visits and inspections conducted at higher education institutions in Dessie, Metu, Bedele, Wolaita Sodo, Dilla and Addis Abeba last month.

Those on the receiving end of the regulators' hand believe the measures taken are “unfair.”

An inspection team from the Agency visited Zemen Postgraduate College three weeks ago, checked on documents, and left after giving the college’s academic staff minor comments, according to Mulugeta Chane, academic dean, who claims that the College did not receive a notice from the Agency before the decision was posted on social media. The Agency blames this college for opening a campus without its prior knowledge.

These are frequent problems because the national focus is on expanding education and not on quality, says Messeret Assefa (PhD), associate professor at the Addis Abeba University School of Education & Behavioral Studies.

"The Agency should rather work closely with the colleges from the moment they apply for registration," said Messeret.

A lack of expertise at the Agency and college owners driven by bottom-line profit and lacking a sense of purpose are the real issues between the private higher learning industry and the regulatory agency, according to Messeret.

"The measure taken is not based on proper inspection," said Mulugeta. "We heard that the Agency took action from our students. It would have been better if they had talked to us directly."

The College has appealed to the Agency, claiming that it had not opened any campuses without the Agency’s consent.