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.

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The issue formed part of discussions during a strategic engagement held on Thursday, 9^th April, 2026, in HEA’s Boardroom in Lusaka, focused on strengthening coordination and ensuring both regulators speak with one voice.

A key concern raised during the meeting was the risk of institutions, particularly outside the traditional university structure, operating without sufficiently robust governance systems to support credible awarding of qualifications.

ZAQA highlighted the importance of maintaining strong safeguards to prevent the emergence of so-called “diploma mills,” where qualifications may be issued without meeting the required academic and quality standards.

In response, HEA emphasised that the responsibility to protect the integrity of qualifications cuts across the entire sector.

The same quality assurance framework applies to both colleges and universities, and must remain robust enough to prevent abuse at all levels.

The discussions pointed towards a shared position, that strengthening internal quality assurance systems, governance structures, and regulatory oversight is key to maintaining the credibility of Zambia’s higher education system.

Both institutions acknowledged that public confidence depends not just on access to education, but on the assurance that qualifications awarded are credible, recognised, and reflective of real competencies.

The engagement signals a united front in protecting the value of education and ensuring that Zambia’s qualifications remain respected locally, regionally, and globally.

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This was one of the key issues discussed during a joint engagement held on Thursday, 9^th April, 2026, in HEA’s Boardroom in Lusaka, aimed at enhancing coordination and ensuring both regulators speak with one voice.

HEA Director – Quality Assurance, Dr. Martin Mushumba, noted that HEIs have repeatedly raised concerns over situations where programmes approved by HEA are later returned by ZAQA for not meeting certain requirements.

This has often led to confusion among HEIs and raised questions from the public regarding the consistency of regulatory processes.

“If it should be good for one institution, it should be good for the other. And if it is good for both of us, then it is good for the sector,” Dr. Mushumba emphasised.

In response, ZAQA, through its Director – Qualification Services, Mr. Fedelis Cheelo, outlined some of the common gaps identified during qualification registration.

“These gaps include insufficient notional hours for programmes, weakly defined learning outcomes, limited stakeholder involvement in programme design, and misalignment between competencies and expected qualification levels,” Mr. Cheelo stated.

Both Authorities agreed on the need to strengthen alignment at the point of accreditation, ensuring that programmes meet the full requirements for registration before reaching ZAQA.

This approach is expected to significantly reduce delays and improve efficiency for institutions, while enhancing confidence in the higher education system.

The discussions reflect a shared understanding that quality assurance does not end at accreditation, but extends to ensuring that qualifications are recognised, registered, and aligned with national and international standards.

#HigherEducationZambia #HEAZambia

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Follow the Higher Education Authority (HEA) on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube (@HEAZambia) and join the conversation using #HEAZambia #HigherEducationZambia. 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

The meeting focused on enhancing coordination, resolving operational grey areas, and ensuring that both regulators speak with one voice in guiding Higher Education Institutions (HEIs).

Speaking during the engagement, HEA Director – Quality Assurance, Dr. Martin Mushumba, emphasised the urgency and importance of sustained interaction between the two (2) institutions.

“The two institutions must be interacting, and we must be talking the same language, so that we agree on a number of things that need to be done in our sector,” Dr. Mushumba said.

The Director – Quality Assurance noted that the meeting, though long overdue, marked the beginning of more structured and frequent engagements aimed at strengthening regulatory clarity and improving service delivery to the sector.

“This is not the last time we are meeting. We must actually be having meetings time and again to look at how we can manage the sector together,” he said.

On the part of ZAQA, Director – Qualification Services, Mr. Fedelis Cheelo, framed the engagement as a necessary step in aligning institutions that serve the same public interest.

“It is indeed very important that once in a while we share notes and see where the members of the public that we serve tend to have interest and how best we can help them achieve their interests,” Mr. Cheelo said.

At the heart of the discussions were practical issues affecting HEIs, including programme pathways and areas where institutions require clearer guidance. Both HEA and ZAQA acknowledged that such grey areas can only be resolved through deliberate collaboration and continuous dialogue.

The engagement signals a renewed commitment by government institutions to operate in a coordinated manner, ensuring that quality assurance, qualifications recognition and regulatory processes are seamless, consistent and responsive to the needs of the higher education subsector.

This approach reflects a broader “whole-of-government” philosophy, where institutions work collectively, not in silos, to deliver effective services for the people of Zambia.

More updates and key outcomes from this engagement will be shared in the HEA Newsletter, therefore, follow and subscribe to stay updated on how HEA continues to work with stakeholders to strengthen higher education in Zambia: https://zc.vg/w2f1Z.

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Read all HEA News here: https://hea.org.zm/hea-news/

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

#NGS2025 #NationalGraduateSurvey

Follow the Higher Education Authority (HEA) on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube (@HEAZambia) and join the conversation using #HEAZambia #HigherEducationZambia.

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