On April 30, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a presentation on measures to improve the non-state education sector and enhance the quality of higher and vocational education.

The development of economic sectors and industries and the overall investment climate are closely linked to the availability of a qualified workforce. For this reason, the higher and vocational education system is undergoing continuous improvement.

Thanks to opportunities provided in recent years for the private education sector, 71 private higher education institutions and 51 private technical colleges have been established, currently enrolling around 500,000 students.

As a result, the national higher education enrollment rate has risen from 9 to 42 percent.

The efforts have undoubtedly opened the door to professional and higher education for thousands of young people. However, not all non-state educational institutions currently provide an adequate standard of instruction.

Today’s key priorities include improving the quality of admissions, academic programs, teaching processes, and scientific capacity within non-state institutions and aligning their activities with the demands of the modern labor market.

In this context, the presentation featured proposals for streamlining the operations of private educational institutions, enhancing the licensing system, and introducing a new procedure for state accreditation.

A proposal was made to transition to a two-tier licensing system based on leading international practices, introduce mandatory specialized accreditation of academic programs, and conduct comprehensive state accreditation every five years.

In addition, an initiative was put forward to establish an independent body responsible for external quality assessment in education and to implement a transparent, objective, and fair quality control system, drawing on best practices from developed countries.

Ensuring education quality and introducing external evaluation mechanisms will enhance the effectiveness of instruction and the scientific potential of vocational and higher education institutions and improve their standing in international rankings.

UzA