The Mount Kenya University (MKU) has become the pioneer private university to be accredited by the Kenya National Qualifications Authority (KNQA).
Meru University of Science and Technology has also been accredited as the first public university.
KNQA Chairperson Dr Kilemi Mwiria says the two are also the first to register their national qualifications in the authority’s framework.
“The accreditation will help rid the country of fake certificates. We will also establish the Kenya National Learners Record database and creating the Kenya Credit Accumulation and Transfer System,” said Mwiria.
The National Industrial Training Authority (Nita) has also been accredited as an institution for enhancing skills by developing curriculam and regulating industrial training.
Additionally, Bandari Maritime Academy has been accredited as a centre of excellence for skills development for the blue economy.
According to Mwira, the new system has automated the process of accreditation and registration of national qualifications countrywide.
The system will go a long way in providing analytics on qualification turnover, student dropout rates, completion rates, preferred qualifications, number of graduates and any other desired descriptive statistics required at any given time.
Mwira added that the authority is working on new policies to support assessment of learners
However, he regretted that some institutions are yet to register their national qualifications with the authority.
Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Simon Chelugui noted that rapid increase in demand for education and training without corresponding increase in infrastructural and structural skills undermines the quality of graduates supplied to the labour market.
The CS said that other factors are the existence of fake certificates, possession of qualifications that do not match skills and poor documentation of awards.
“Accreditation will solve challenges that have caused confusion in the labour market, especially during hiring and determinations. These include availability of multiple certificates from multiple training institutions,” he said.
Receiving the award, MKU Vice Chancellor Prof. Deogratius Jaganyi said contents of the Kenya National Qualifications Handbook (2018), which is available online, resonate well with MKU’s new status of serving as the United Nations Academic Impact SDG 10 Hub on Reduced Inequalities between June 2021 and May 2024.
“MKU Programmes are already accredited by Commission for University Education and other respective programme regulating bodies and councils,” he said.
The KNQA is mandated by the government to coordinate and harmonize education, training, assessment and quality assurance of all qualifications awarded in the country; with the view to improving quality and international comparability.
