Sunday, September 16, 2012

DO YOU WANT TO ESTABLISH UNIVERSITY? DO YOU KNOW HOW UNIVERSITIES ACCREDITED BY TANZANIA COMMISSION FOR UNIVERSITIES? HERE ARE ACCREDITATION PROCESSES FOR UNIVERSITY TO START PROVIDING ACADEMIC SERVICES IN TANZANIA

Usually, there are three (3) stages that a person wishing to establish a University in Tanzania must undergo, namely, Provisional Licensing, Accreditation and finally, Chartering.

a)    Provisional Licensing

 Provisional Licensing is a process leading to a grant, by the Commission, of a Certificate of Provisional Registration (CPR) upon being satisfied that the applicant has two important instruments, namely, a draft charter and an action plan, indicating steps to be taken over a period of three years from the date of establishing the proposed University towards the realization of the object of the proposed University in the provision of University education. Details on provisional licensing procedures are as explained in the Regulations.

 b)    Accreditation

 Accreditation is a system for recognizing a University, its academic and professional programmes as well as governance and management structures for a level of performance, integrity, standards and quality which entitle the university to the confidence of the public it serves. In this context an accredited university means a university which has been given such recognition upon satisfaction of the legal requirements spelt out in the Universities Act and other applicable laws.

A university which is a holder of Certificate of Provisional Registration may apply to the Commission for grant of Accreditation. In the minimum the application must contain:

i)                   All information required for application of a provisional licence;

ii)                A list and academic qualifications of the academic staff and senior administrative staff in full-time employment of the institution;

iii)              A list of the total number of students that have been enrolled in each programme of instruction being offered at the institution;

iv)               Precise information on availability of library facilities, including the size, quality and quantity of the equipment provided in each programme of instruction by the institution;

v)                 A statement of the financial resources available for the exclusive use of the institution certified by a qualified accountant;

vi)               An inventory of the physical facilities including land available for the exclusive use of the institution;

vii)            The names, addresses and status of the proprietors or owners or, as the case may be, promoters or sponsors of the institution; and

viii)          Any other information as the Commission may require in writing.

Accreditation however is not automatic; rather, it follows a systematic process which eventually leads to a grant of a Certificate of Accreditation (CoA).

 c)     Chartering

A Charter is a governance instrument of a university issued in accordance with an approved format, signed and granted by the President in accordance with the Universities Act. A chartered University therefore means a University whose governance instrument has been approved by the Commission, signed and granted by the President.

i)      Chartering Procedures for a Local University

The procedure for chartering for a local university begins with an application by a university which has been accredited (holder of certificate of accreditation) to the Commission. Once the Commission is satisfied that the proposed charter meets the requirements of the law, it will make recommendations to the Minister responsible for Universities, for onward transmission to the President, for granting of a charter to the university.

Once a charter is singed and granted by the President it must be published in the Government Gazette to make the university in question acquire the status of a body corporate with rights, obligations and privileges associated with such a status. Such a university can award or offer Certificates, Diplomas, Degrees and other academic awards.

Details on chartering process are indicated in the Regulations.

(ii)    Procedures for a University Holding a Foreign Charter

The law allows a foreign university incorporated, registered and authorised to provide university education and holding charter in a foreign country to apply for local registration of the charter in question.  The application for local registration of a foreign charter should be made to the Commission and must be accompanied by:-

(a)  The charter, memorandum and articles of association or, as the case may be, the constitution of the applicant;

(b)   An outline of academic programmes or courses of study to be offered by the foreign university and the quality assurance system;

(c)   Information on an established local academic committee and an administrative mechanism for the effective and efficient operationalization locally of such academic programmes or courses of study of the institution and the carrying out of the day-to-day administration of the programmes and related operations of the institution in Tanzania in accordance with the provisions of this Act;

(d)  The form of governance through which the academic and administrative affairs of the institution are to be conducted;

(e)  Proposed human resources including academic and senior administrative staff;

(f)    Existing or proposed physical infrastructure;

(g)  Academic facilities including library services and the size, quality and quantity of the equipment provided for in each programme of instructions by the institution;

(h)  Necessary policy documents as prescribed by the Commission; and

(i)    Any other information which the Commission in the exercise of its powers under the Universities Act, may require.

Other requirements are those as stipulated in the Regulations.  It should be noted that, a foreign charter submitted for local registration and approval may either be approved in the form in which it is submitted or in a modified manner as may be considered appropriate by the President.

Once a foreign charter has been approved by the President, with or without modification, the Commission will register that foreign university as a Private University and such a university shall be required to comply with all requirements of the law in relation to provision of university education in Tanzania.

Current status of established universities (local and foreign) in Tanzania as of 2009 is as shown in the list of Universities, Colleges and Institutes

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