Untangle overlapping roles of CUE and KNQA

Education in Kenya is governed by several semi-autonomous government agencies, each established by Acts of Parliament to ensure the quality, relevance, and international comparability of the country’s qualifications. Among these are the Commission for University Education (CUE) and the Kenya National Qualifications Authority (KNQA), both of which play crucial roles in shaping the nation’s educational standards. But overlapping mandates between these two bodies have led to confusion, raising questions about which agency should handle the critical task of recognition and equation of qualifications.

CUE was established under the Universities Act of 2012, taking over the functions, tools, and assets of its predecessor, the Commission for Higher Education (CHE), which was created in 1985. Initially, CHE’s primary mandate was to oversee the quality of education at private universities. Over time, its scope expanded to include Technical and Vocational Education Training and the recognition and equation of qualifications, tasks that were inherited by CUE when it was formed.

However, the subsequent creation of KNQA through the Kenya National Qualifications Framework (KNQF) Act Cap. 214 created an overlap in functions. KNQA’s role was to coordinate and harmonise education, training, assessment, and quality assurance of all qualifications awarded in the country. Its primary goal is to enhance the quality and international comparability qualifications, ensuring that the country’s education system meets global standards.

KNQA’s mandate includes developing and implementing the KNQF, a robust tool designed to ensure coherence, quality, and inclusivity in the recognition of skills and qualifications. This framework aims to facilitate the seamless integration of academic, TVET, and skills sub-frameworks, ensuring that qualifications are organised, recognised, and registered in a transparent manner. The KNQF is not only a national reform tool but also part of Kenya’s international commitment to creating a reliable database of qualifications that allows for comparability and portability of skills across borders.

One of the key responsibilities of KNQA is to manage the Kenya National Learners Record Database, which centralises all credible qualifications in the country. This database is vital in curbing the proliferation of fake and fraudulent qualifications, as it provides a single source of truth for employers, educational institutions, and other stakeholders to verify the authenticity of credentials.

Given KNQA’s specific mandate to harmonise and ensure the quality of qualifications across all levels of education and training, it stands to reason that this agency should take over the task of recognition and equation of qualifications from CUE, which has kept this role for appropriation-in-aid reasons. KNQA’s framework provides a structured and transparent platform that not only supports national needs but also aligns with international standards, strengthening lifelong learning and mobility of skills across borders.

At the continental level, national qualifications authorities in Africa, including KNQA, are collaborating on developing a single qualifications database through the African Continental Qualifications Framework. This initiative will further enhance the comparability, mobility, and mutual trust of qualifications across the region, opening up new opportunities for learners and professionals alike.

The overlapping functions between CUE and KNQA have created unnecessary confusion in Kenya’s education system. To ensure clarity and efficiency, it is essential that KNQA fully assume its role in recognition and equation of qualifications. This shift would streamline processes, reduce redundancy, and strengthen Kenya’s position in global education. CUE should make better the advancement of quality university education in Kenya through regulating and accrediting institutions and their academic programmes.

— The writer is a Professor of Physical Chemistry at the University of Eldoret