Users’ Guide for the African Standard and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ASG-QA)

The African Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ASG-QA) were developed in 2018 as part of the Pan-African Quality Assurance and Accreditation Framework (PAQAF), which provides a continental framework to harmonise higher education quality assurance systems and promote compatible methodologies, endorsed by the African Union. The ASG-QA were developed following a mapping of existing standards at national and regional levels, a comparison with other existing international standards and guidelines as well as a broad stakeholder consultation. This was done with the support of the HAQAA Initiative – Harmonisation, Accreditation and Quality Assurance in African Higher Education, funded by the European Union in support of its partnership with the African Union. The aim of this Users’ Guide is to further support the implementation of the ASG-QA by providing practical guidance and explanation, including: clarifications to improve the understanding and interpretation of the ASG-QA, particularly related to aspects of individual standards that have proved challenging in the first years of their use; guidance on the implementation of the standards for HEIs and QAAs in the early stages of development; examples of how HEIs and QAAs can demonstrate that they are meeting the commitments of the ASG-QA when undergoing internal or external reviews.

非洲高等教育质量保障标准与指南（African Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Higher Education，ASG-QA）于2018年制定，是泛非质量保障与认证框架（Pan-African Quality Assurance and Accreditation Framework，PAQAF）的组成部分。该框架经非洲联盟核准，旨在构建大陆级统筹框架以协调各国及区域的高等教育质量保障体系，并推广兼容的方法体系。ASG-QA的制定基于对国家及区域层面现有标准的梳理、与其他现行国际标准及指南的比对，以及广泛的利益相关方咨询。此项工作得到了非洲高等教育协调、认证与质量保障倡议（Harmonisation, Accreditation and Quality Assurance in African Higher Education，HAQAA Initiative）的支持，该倡议由欧盟资助，以支持其与非洲联盟的伙伴合作。本用户指南旨在通过提供实用指导与详细阐释，进一步推动ASG-QA的落地实施，具体内容包括：为提升对ASG-QA的理解与解读提供补充说明，尤其针对在首年应用中被证明存在理解难点的单项标准相关内容；为处于发展初期的高等教育机构（Higher Education Institutions，HEIs）与质量保障机构（Quality Assurance Agencies，QAAs）提供标准实施指引；并举例说明高等教育机构与质量保障机构在开展内部或外部评审时，如何证明其符合ASG-QA的相关承诺要求。