MUSCAT : The session, attended by specialists in the higher education sector, was held under the auspices of Her Excellency Dr. Madiha Ahmed Al Shaibani, Minister of Education.

Her Excellency Dr. Jokha bint Abdullah Al Shukaili, Chairperson of Oman Authority for Quality Assurance of Education, gave a presentation in which she discussed updates related to the renaming of the Authority, its institutional identity, the definition of its competencies and its national role in developing the system of education in accordance with the best international practices.

The updates, she explained, include supporting the integration of the educational system and measuring the governance of performance through an independent national body, she added.

The session reviewed the features of the Strategic Plan (2026–2030) and the new organisational structure.
Another presentation was made by Dr. Reem bint Abdullah Al Alawi, Director General of the Centre for Higher Education Quality Assurance. Dr. Reem spoke about external activities of quality assurance in higher education. Her presentation laid emphasis on the organizational structure of the centre, related statistics and the importance of training and building national capacities in this field.

For her part, Fakhriya Al Habsi, Director General of the Framework of National Qualifications at Oman Authority for Quality Assurance of Education, spoke about challenges of implementing the National Qualifications Framework in terms of “changes that it imposes, its outputs and issues related to designing, developing and reviewing qualifications”.

Salim Al Kindi, a quality assurance expert at the Authority, spoke about regulatory policies related to the implementation of external quality assurance activities. These, he said, include the policy on international external quality assurance activities and the policy on risks of material changes in external quality assurance activities in higher education.

Al Kindi pointed out that updates brought about by the aforementioned policies enhance shared responsibility between the Authority and educational institutions and provide a roadmap for dealing with international parties, in addition to providing regulatory guarantees that contribute to the protection of institutions from risks associated with unplanned changes.

The session concluded with a presentation by Dr. Eman Al Nu’omani, Director of the Department of Institutional Quality Assurance. Her presentation elaborated on the Authority’s project to obtain recognition from the International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE).

The presentation highlighted the progress made so far to gain recognition from the INQAAHE, standards and guidelines associated with the international body and the roles of the higher education sector in the next stage.

Dr. Eman pointed out that gaining the INQAAHE’s recognition would enhance the Sultanate of Oman’s global status in the field of higher education quality.

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