The Kenya National Qualifications Authority (KNQA) has drafted new regulations which if adopted will eliminate scams that have seen fake papers pass as real.
It will also for the first time establish a database for all who have gone through different levels of education and training – the Kenya National Learners Records Database (KNLRD) while streamlining the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).
The database contained in the proposed Kenya National Qualification Framework (KNQF) Draft Regulations, 2023 will be established and maintained by KNQA, and it will further inform the implementation and maintenance of KNQF.
According to the proposed regulations, the database will contain information on learner records or achievements, registered qualifications and part qualifications, and details of accredited awarding institutions and professional bodies.
Awarding institutions will be required to upload the learners’ records/achievements or integrate their systems with the KNLRD in a prescribed format while sector regulators will ensure compliance.
Relevant stakeholders interested in accessing the database will have to subscribe to the KNLRD per the set standards, guidelines and the Data Protection Act of 2019.
The system will help the Authority in rooting out fake certificates, since it will among other things include learner’s details corroborating the courses and the institutions offering them, and further reflect the institution’s accreditation status.
In addition, the database will include all accredited qualifications and their respective institutions.
In the draft regulations, RPL has been streamlined and now KNQA has been mandated to establish and coordinate the implementation of RPL policy framework, standards and guidelines.
The regulatory bodies as established by various Acts of Parliament will ensure quality assurance of the RPL process in line with the KNQF Act, while qualifications awarding institutions will identify, assess and award qualifications through the RPL process.
In the proposed regulations, a person who has acquired knowledge, skills and competencies outside the formal education and training system may apply to QAIs for recognition of prior learning.
An Application for RPL assessment will be done in accordance with the format prescribed by the respective QAIs as set out in the RPL Standards and Implementation Guidelines.
Currently, a person who has acquired knowledge, skills and competencies outside the formal education and training system is required to apply to the Authority for recognition of prior learning.
Such an application is followed by an issuance of a Certificate of Experiential Learning, while an applicant who does not hold a certificate may be eligible for admission to a National Qualifications Framework level.
Alternatively, they can be granted experiential learning equivalent to a qualification in the National Qualifications Framework level.
The Presidential Working Party on Education Reform (PWPER) in its final report has recommended the implementation of RPL policy and Credit Accumulation and Transfer Systems (CATS).
In the report presented to President William Ruto, Prof. Raphael Munavu’s team also wants more awareness creation on RPL and CATS.
“We recommend the development of a framework for linkages among TVETs to remove duplications and create centres of excellence based on niche,” partly reads the report that the President has directed its immediate implementation.
In 2021, former President Uhuru Kenyatta announced that the government would address inequity and inequality in tendering for contracts caused by lack of certification on the part of jua kali artisans.
Already, Education Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ezekiel Machogu has appointed a team to review the RPL framework as well as organize the first graduation of RPL learners in September this year.
RPL has been adopted as a redress mechanism for past inequalities, facilitating improved employability, mobility, progression and access within education, training and development.
Internationally, RPL is used as a tool for lifelong learning through access to higher education and credit transfers or harmonization (national and foreign credits).
Powers
The draft regulations will empower the Authority to establish a national accreditation and registration system, which will comprise standards, guidelines, and procedures for accrediting and registering Qualifications Awarding Institutions (QAIs).
The accreditation and registration will take into account a hierarchy of qualifications that defines vertical progression within the qualifications system, an institutional infrastructure for governance, financing, operations and quality assurance.
For an institution to be eligible for registration as a QAI, it will have a legal mandate to award qualifications and further demonstrate compliance with the national accreditation standards, guidelines and procedures.
When issuing a certificate of accreditation, the Authority will record the legal name and trading name (if different), the accreditation number allocated, the accreditation certificate serial number, the date accreditation was granted, the period of accreditation granted and where necessary, the scheduled date for re-accreditation.
When considering an application for registration of a qualification, the Authority will have regard to approval by the sub-sector regulators, the skill sector regulator’s /or professional body’s approval (where applicable), availability of industry standards, the relevance of the qualification to industry or labour market demands, and consistency of subject qualifications with respect to learning levels, among others.
By Roy Hezron
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