Higher education
18 Nov 2010
On this page
- Short description of the higher education system
- Types of degrees
- Quality assurance and accreditation
- Recent reforms
Short description of the higher education system
The government budget is the main source of funding for public institutions, which is supplemented by contributions from donors and other internal income-generating activities. Tuition fees contribute a negligible amount, and in some instances do not contribute at all. For private institutions, tuition fees provide the main source of revenue, supplemented by donor contributions.
Types of degrees
Admission to higher education is based on secondary education certificates and a university entrance exam. The first cycle of university education leads to the Bacharelato (bachelor’s; two to three years), which in turn allows further study towards the Licenciatura (licentiate; two years). A Licenciatura provides admission to the Mestrado (master’s), which provides entry to PhD programmes. PhD programmes have only recently been introduced and are not yet offered in all disciplines.
Within the higher education sector, lecturers must hold at least a Licenciatura. Many lecturers hold a master's degree or a PhD. University teacher training is available at the higher education institutions.
Several polytechnics were founded in Mozambique between 1995 and 2005. Built up around completely new curricula defined on the basis of the human resource needs of the local labour market, these institutions combine practice and theory in three to four-year bachelor’s and honours degree programmes, as well as in non-degree programmes.
Quality assurance and accreditation
The National Commission of Accreditation and Evaluation of Higher Education (CNAQ) was established in 2003 and is responsible for all quality assurance and accreditation affairs.
Recent reforms
Shaped by a political history in which colonialism ended just three and a half decades ago, only to be followed by a long civil war (fifteen years), Mozambique’s education system is still in its infancy. The government of Mozambique is aware of the challenges facing the national education system and has been implementing reforms in conjunction with international donors such as the World Bank since the end of the civil war.
These reforms are ongoing and are grounded in the country’s Plan for the Reduction of Absolute Poverty (PARPA). The Education Strategic Sector Plans (ESSP I (1999-2003) and ESSP II (2005-2009)) defined priority areas for reform, including professional education. These plans, in turn, formed the foundation for the Strategic Plan for Higher education (PEES, 2000-2010), which was drawn up to highlight priority issues for reform within the higher education sector.
Professional education was again among the priority areas identified here, leading to the establishment of the Professional Education Reforms Programme (REP). REP reforms were initiated within a five-year pilot project: the Integrated Professional Education Reform Programme (PIREP, 2006-2010). The results of this project will be used to map out further reforms within the higher professional education sector. Most of these strategy documents will expire in 2010.
Though the government of Mozambique has not yet announced its reform plans for the period to come, these are expected to continue along the lines of the investments made so far.
