The engagement, held on Thursday, 9^th April, 2026, in HEA’s Boardroom in Lusaka, focused on enhancing coordination, resolving operational grey areas and ensuring that both regulators speak with one voice in guiding HEIs.

A key issue raised during the meeting was whether students should be admitted into universities before their qualifications are verified by ZAQA, a matter that has increasingly affected admission processes across the country.

HEA Director – Quality Assurance, Dr. Martin Mushumba, noted that HEIs have been seeking clarity on the requirement, particularly in light of concerns that verification processes may slow down enrolment, especially for students in remote areas.

On its part, ZAQA, through its Director – Qualification Services, Mr. Fedelis Cheelo, clarified that the requirement for verification should be understood within the context of enrolment, not initial admission. This distinction provides an important pathway for students.

“Prospective students can apply and receive admission offers using their results, but are expected to complete the verification process before formal enrolment into their respective programmes,” Mr. Cheelo said.

The approach ensures that institutions maintain academic flow while safeguarding the integrity of qualifications within the system.

The requirement is anchored in the Zambia Qualifications Authority Act, 2024, which mandates the verification of qualifications to ensure authenticity and recognition within the national framework.

The discussion further highlighted the need to improve messaging to the public, ensuring that students understand that verification can be initiated immediately after results are released, rather than waiting until admission.

This alignment between HEA and ZAQA is expected to reduce delays in student progression, protect institutions from regulatory breaches, enhance public confidence in qualifications, and ensure that graduates hold recognised and verifiable credentials

The engagement reflects a shared commitment by both institutions to remove barriers while strengthening quality assurance mechanisms across the sector.

#HigherEducationZambia #HEAZambia

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Higher Education Authority (HEA) │ 2^nd Floor, Engineering House │ Stand No. 2374, Kelvin Siwale Road │ P.O. Box 50795, Ridgeway, Lusaka │ +260 976 936 658│ info@hea.org.zm │ www.hea.org.zm

This focus on staff welfare and mental health formed a key pillar of the HEA 2025 End of Year Staff Meeting, held from 22^nd to 23^rd December, 2025, at Legacy Resort. The meeting came at the end of a demanding yet successful year for the Authority, marked by major undertakings including the inaugural Higher Education Indaba 2025, the National Graduate Survey, regulatory reforms, and strengthened stakeholder engagement across the higher education sector.

Against this backdrop of achievement, HEA deliberately created space for reflection, renewal, and learning, acknowledging the importance of mental resilience as the institution prepares for an even more ambitious year ahead.

A dedicated mental health session was facilitated by Dr. Clinton Kadochi, a Corporate Wellness Consultant and Mental Health Practitioner, who is also a Postgraduate Researcher and Clinical Neuropsychologist at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH). His session contextualised mental health within modern work environments, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Kadochi highlighted that globally, depression and anxiety disorders increased significantly during and after the pandemic, with workplaces experiencing rising levels of burnout, emotional exhaustion, reduced productivity, and declining morale. He emphasised that mental health is not only a personal concern, but a workforce performance and institutional sustainability issue.

Importantly, the session reframed stress, not as an enemy, but as a natural biological response designed to enhance focus and performance. However, stress becomes harmful when it is prolonged, unmanaged, and unresolved. Many individuals experience continuous triggers without completing the recovery phase of the stress cycle, leading to accumulated strain over time.

The session underscored practical approaches institutions can adopt to support staff wellbeing, including promoting psychological safety, encouraging regular breaks, normalising conversations around mental health, supporting physical movement, and recognising the importance of recovery time. Dr. Kadochi also introduced the concept of work–life integration, noting that different life seasons require flexibility, boundary-setting, and intentional transitions—rather than rigid notions of balance.

As HEA looks ahead, the lessons from this engagement reaffirm the Authority’s commitment to caring for its staff as whole persons. By embedding mental health awareness into its organisational culture, HEA is positioning itself for sustained excellence, recognising that a healthy, supported workforce is essential to delivering quality higher education regulation and oversight.

With renewed focus, clarity, and collective resolve, HEA enters the coming year refreshed, strengthened, and ready to build on the gains of 2025.

#HigherEducationZambia #HEAZambia

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Higher Education Authority (HEA) │ 2^nd Floor, Engineering House │ Stand No. 2374, Kelvin Siwale Road │ P.O. Box 50795, Ridgeway, Lusaka │ +260 211 227 084 │ info@hea.org.zm│ www.hea.org.zm

Professor Chinsembu, accompanied by members of Management and Staff, visited the property on Monday, 10^th November, 2025, to assess its condition and suitability for conversion into HEA offices. The house, which is in good condition, was forfeited to the State and later allocated to the Authority by the Secretary to the Treasury under the Ministry of Finance and National Planning.

Speaking during the visit, Professor Chinsembu said that the Authority had long sought Government support for office space, as it currently operates from rented premises at the Engineering Institution of Zambia (EIZ) Building, Engineering House.

“For a long time, we had been requesting the Ministry to allocate office space for the Higher Education Authority. We are, therefore, very happy to receive this property from the Government,” he said.

He explained that the Authority intends to use the property as HEA offices once the necessary formalities are completed.

Professor Chinsembu further revealed that HEA had included the purchase of land in this year’s budget to construct its own offices, and that the newly allocated property now provides a valuable head start for the institution in its quest to own property.

“This house gives us a good starting point,” he said, adding, “We plan to extend or build additional structures in the future so that we can create a bigger office space for the Authority.”

The Director-General thanked the Government, the Secretary to the Treasury, and all institutions involved in making the allocation possible.

“We are truly grateful for this wonderful gesture. It represents progress not only for the HEA but also for other public institutions,” he concluded.

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Stay informed. Stay connected. Stay empowered.

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Higher Education Authority (HEA) │ 2^nd Floor, Engineering House │ Stand No. 2374, Kelvin Siwale Road │ P.O. Box 50795, Ridgeway, Lusaka │ +260 211 227 084 │ info@hea.org.zm │ www.hea.org.zm

The commitment reads: “I pledge to ensure climate‑smart education is accessible and effective for all.“

Educators, parents, students, and public servants lined up to sign. Their pledges are not just words, they symbolise a collective promise to embed climate literacy into classrooms, curricula, and community outreach.

HEA is inviting show visitors to visit our stand, join the pledge, and help us imagine a climate‑literate Zambia where education protects our environment and fuels innovation.

Visit HEA’s stand is located at F7, near ZNBC and the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.

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Stay informed. Stay connected. Stay empowered.

Take the National Graduate Survey! https://hea.org.zm/nationalgraduatesurvey/

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Don’t miss the HEA Newsletter. #HigherEducationZambia #HEAZambia

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Visit www.hea.org.zm for all higher education updates in Zambia. Higher Education Authority (HEA) │ 2^nd Floor, Engineering House │ Stand No. 2374, Kelvin Siwale Road │ P.O. Box 50795, Ridgeway, Lusaka │ +260 211 227 084 │ info@hea.org.zm │ www.hea.org.zm

HEA, which operates under the Ministry of Education, didn’t come empty-handed. With a climate-smart exhibit of its own at Stand F7, the Authority came bearing gifts of visibility, outreach, and higher learning innovation, but also came to tip the hat to the Ministry that makes it all possible.

In the picture, (L-R), Mr. Jeff Banda, Public Relations Officer; Mr. Nicolas Nkhuwa, Manager – Corporate Affairs, Examinations Council of Zambia (ECZ); Ms. Kunda Mando, Assistant Director, Ministry of Education; Mr. Clive Kalunga, Principal Public Relations Officer, Ministry of Education; and Mr. Musoba.

The encounter was light-hearted, warm, and filled with professional camaraderie, a reminder that at national exhibitions like these, family is everything.

As one bystander (definitely not Mr. Musoba himself) whispered, “When you visit the parent stand, you kneel… figuratively, of course.”

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Stay informed. Stay connected. Stay empowered.

Take the National Graduate Survey! https://hea.org.zm/nationalgraduatesurvey/

#NGS2025 #NationalGraduateSurvey

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Don’t miss the HEA Newsletter. #HigherEducationZambia #HEAZambia

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Visit www.hea.org.zm for all higher education updates in Zambia. Higher Education Authority (HEA) │ 2^nd Floor, Engineering House │ Stand No. 2374, Kelvin Siwale Road │ P.O. Box 50795, Ridgeway, Lusaka │ +260 211 227 084 │ info@hea.org.zm │ www.hea.org.zm

The HEA delegation was led by the Director-General, Professor Kazhila C. Chinsembu, who was accompanied by Dr. Martin Mushumba, Director – Quality Assurance; Mr. Denny Nsokolo, Acting Manager – Quality Assurance; and, Mr. Joseph Munachoonga, Accountant – Revenue and Acting Accountant – Expenditure.

Her Excellency, Ms. Karolina Stasiak, received HEA at the embassy on Wednesday, 29^th January, 2025. The meeting was successful and has yielded collaborations which the Authority will announce soon.

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Dr. Mushumba said this during the opening of the annual institutional audits of the University of Zambia (UNZA), as he stood in for the Director-General who was away on national duties.

Dr. Mushumba remarks were reemphasising the provisions of the Higher Education (Amendment) Act, 2024, where in Section 22A (1), the Act states that a Higher Education Institution registered or declared by Statutory Order under this Act shall be subjected to an annual institutional audit by the Authority in the prescribed manner and form on payment of the prescribed fee.

The provisions of Section 22A of the Amendment Act make it clear that annual institutional audits apply to both public and private HEIs as private HEIs are the ones that are registered, whilst public HEIs are the ones that are declared by Statutory Order.

This is why HEA conducted the audits of UNZA from 2^nd to 5^th December, 2024, and the Copperbelt University (CBU) from 19^th to 21^st November, 2024.

The prescribed manner and form on payment of the prescribed fee for the annual institutional audits are provided for in the Higher Education (General) Regulations, 2024, that were issued to operationalise the Higher Education (Amendment) Act, 2024 and took effect on 29^th August, 2024.

The General Regulations have changed the associated fees to the services provided by HEA, including introducing fees that were not previous paid like annual institution audit fees. The fees

Dr. Mushumba continued his remarks by saying, “Annual audits, in our case, have become a legal requirement that we need to fulfil every year without fail. We are coming from a time where we could audit institutions as per when we could manage as HEA but in this particular time, we have no excuse for not auditing any institution even when we have an excuse in terms of inadequacy on our part due lack of adequate number of staff.”

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View all the images of the audit of Zambia’s oldest and largest Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) on our Facebook Page here: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=heazambia&set=a.889321943373313

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Join the conversation @HEAZambia on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube using the hashtag #HEAZambia #HigherEducationZambia, and visit our website, www.hea.org.zm, for ALL the information on higher education in Zambia.

The following is an edited podcast presentation of the live Higher Education Hour which aired on Monday, 28^th October, 2024, on Lusaka Radio 97.7FM.

This podcast has been shared with express permission from Lusaka Radio 97.7FM.

HEA’s the Higher Education Hour is brought to you with the generous support of Lusaka Music Radio 97.7FM.

Listen to the Podcast below:

1. YouTube: https://youtu.be/YYd_3_aVAyA
2. HEA Website: https://hea.org.zm/download/hea-podcast-episode-2-higher-education-hour-presents-the-corporate-communications-officer/

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In its exhibitions, HEA has domesticated the theme to showcase how the Authority is “Creating a Competitive Future through Ensuring Quality in Higher Education.”

Take the tour of HEA’s Stand at the 96^th Agriculture and Commercial Show with the Show Judges here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaSq-8DkGQ0.

Pass through the HEA Stand at the 96^th Agriculture and Commercial Show and get a tour of the Stand to see how the Authority is “Creating a Competitive Future through Ensuring Quality in Higher Education.” We are found at stand F7 near the ZNBC Stand.

Here are the image highlights from the past few days at the show.