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ONLY 10 PRIVATE COLLEGES

02/03/2015 09:09:00 BY MBONGENI NDLELA

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MBABANE – Out of 43 private colleges, at least 10 of these institutions have submitted the quality assurance form as an indication that they are ready to comply with the Higher Education Act.

By submitting the form, the institutions were granted provisional registration by the Ministry of Education and Training.

All the 43 colleges had approached the ministry to apply for a provisional licence, which they were given and told to fill the quality assurance form before they could be granted provisional registration.

On January 5, 2015, the Director of Education, Sibongile Mntshali, informed the colleges, through letters, to pick up the 20-page form which contains standards and the criteria that are expected from private colleges.

Among the standards expected from the colleges include having a proper structure, qualifications of the lecturers, budgeting and national and international recognition of the qualifications produced.

The Times Investigations Desk has established that the colleges were expected to submit the forms on January 30, 2015.

"You are advised to complete the form and return it before the end of January 2015.

"The submission of the form will grant you provisional registration until the Higher Education Council finishes processing your application package," reads Mntshali’s letter to the colleges.

Last week, government launched the Higher Education Council, which is expected to regulate and monitor the standard of education in institutions of higher learning and to provide them with accreditation.

When launching the council, Minister of Education and Training Phineas Magagula said issues of accreditation, registration, fly-by-night and bogus institutions would be a thing of the past.

Last week, members of the public called for the publication of the colleges with provisional licences.

On Thursday, the Times Investigations Desk approached Pat Muir, Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Education and Training, who unhesitatingly instructed a secretary in the director of education’s office to release the list of the colleges.