Authorities are more determined than ever to bring order to the private higher education subsector, where total anarchy reigns. This, at least, is the assurance given by Professor Cheikh Sène, Director of Private Higher Education. In this interview with Seneweb, the academic discussed the number of institutions identified, as well as the regulatory provisions to which these institutions are subject.

Mr. Director, for several years now, we have noted a proliferation of private higher education institutions. How many are there exactly?

There are a huge number of private higher education institutions. The Ministry of Higher Education's directory lists 296. However, some have authorization from the Ministry of Vocational Training, which we don't know about. There are some that have authorization from both the Ministry of Higher Education and the Ministry of Vocational Training.

Regarding private higher education institutions specializing in the health field, an audit was conducted, and we have an interministerial commission being set up to translate all recommendations into decisions. The Ministry of Higher Education had been instructed since June 2022 to conduct this audit with AnaQSup. The report was therefore recently submitted to the authorities.

Can we have a little idea about the key recommendations?

There are a lot of them and when the time comes, public opinion will be informed about all the decisions that are taken.

But what I can tell you is that when an establishment asks to open, if it is at the higher education level, it is given provisional authorization and, at the end of the first year of operation, it is asked to go to AnaQSup to obtain institutional accreditation, which is the first step towards quality assurance.

Once the institution has institutional accreditation, it must also submit its programs for accreditation. Now, once the programs are accredited, the Senegalese civil service recognizes the diplomas through the Diploma Recognition and Equivalence Commission. Therefore, only diplomas accredited by institutions accredited by AnaQSup are recognized by the civil service.

Obviously, after accreditation by AnaQSup, there is another step to take towards Cames: Cames accreditation.

Between the institutions and the ministry, who is authorized to issue a diploma?

The regulations state that each institution is required to issue certificates, but diplomas are signed by the ministry. However, it should be noted that the ministry only signs diplomas from recognized institutions. An institution that has been operating for several years and still doesn't have AnaQSup accreditation is not normal. When you're given authorization to operate, you're told that at the end of the first year, you must submit your application for institutional accreditation.

Are there any sanctions against establishments that do not comply with the regulations?

If a school does not comply with these regulatory provisions, which require it to submit its application to AnaQSup for accreditation after the first year of operation, the law authorizes the ministry to order its closure.

Have you ever closed private higher education institutions?

Yes! And that's never out of the question. I recently wrote a report on the general situation of private higher education institutions, and we should expect sanctions in this regard soon. But this is work we're currently doing; I can't give you all the details.

But do you have any idea, as an authority, of the number of students who end up with unrecognized diplomas because they are enrolled in establishments that do not have institutional accreditation?

Here, too, students and parents are somewhat at fault. Today, more and more students and parents take the trouble to call the ministry before enrolling to inquire about the institution's status, or they go directly to the AnaQsup website, where they can find a directory of authorized institutions and accredited programs.

We communicate quite often to raise awareness. But all of this is about to be resolved because we are going to bring order to this sub-sector. We cannot let institutions set up haphazardly and do whatever they want. That is why we set up the directory and it is also the reason for the existence of AnaQSup, which is the technical arm of the Ministry of Higher Education. We also ensure the quality assurance of all institutions, both public and private.