Seychelles Qualifications Authority – Set up in February 2006, following the approval of the SQA Bill in November 2005. At present the authority has a very small complement of staff – 4 specialist staff and 3 support staff. The intention is to remain small and nimble. The SQA is approximately at the half way stage in the development of the national qualifications framework, having already defined the concept of its NQF, develped policy-guidelines for standards setting, recognition of foreign qualifications. It is starting the process of recognition of existing qualifications, developing a policy on RPL, and making some headway in the development of quality assurance regulations (validation, certification and acceditation).
We have prepared this paper as four practitioners located in two African qualifications authorities that have collaborated in the area of qualifications framework development since 2003. In the paper, we give an overview of the development of occupationally-directed qualifications in the two countries to date, recognising that in the Seychelles a strong emphasis is being placed on a competency-based approach, while in South Africa an outcomes-based approach has been favoured. Comparing the two approaches, the current debates in each country and recognising that significant contextual differences exist between the Seychelles and South Africa we attempt to identify common challenges faced in the two countries as well as possible ways in which such challenges can be addressed. |
