The West African Anglophone Quality Assurance Network (WAAQAN), in collaboration with Cuttington University, has opened its second international conference in Suakoko, Bong County. The four-day event, which began on September 1, 2025, is being held under the theme “Improving Higher Education Institutions’ Ecosystem Through Quality Assurance.” It has drawn together academics, policymakers, quality assurance experts, and government representatives from across the sub-region.
At the commencement ceremony, WAAQAN President, Professor Kayode Samuel Adekeye, in his official opening statement, described the gathering as a significant milestone in strengthening quality assurance across higher education institutions in Anglophone West Africa.
“It is with great pleasure that I warmly welcome you all to this second international conference,” Prof Adekeye told delegates. “In the next four days, we shall share knowledge for the improvement of quality deliverables in the higher education ecosystem.” Adekeye outlined four key areas of his address: the background of WAAQUAN, its achievements, the relevance of the conference theme, and concluding reflections on the way forward.
He explained that WAAQAN was born from an 18-month training programme tagged TrainIQAfrica, which trained thirty internal quality assurance officers from Anglophone West African countries. The initiative was coordinated by Germany’s University of Duisburg-Essen in partnership with several African higher education bodies.
Delivering a keynote address, The Gambia’s Higher Education Minister, Professor Pierre Gomez, urged delegates to “move from quality to impact.” He said his country had undertaken reforms, including legislative amendments, the adoption of a national qualification framework, and the establishment of internal quality assurance units in public and private universities.
Gomez described quality assurance as “not a luxury, but a necessity” for credibility, student mobility, and global competitiveness. He added that regional collaboration was indispensable for transforming institutions into “engines of innovation.” Over the next three days, the sessions will examine digitalization, governance, curriculum innovation, and strategies to sustain quality assurance systems. The conference is expected to conclude with actionable recommendations for higher education reforms across Anglophone West Africa. Meanwhile, Liberia’s Education Minister, Jarso Maley Jallah, who officially opened the conference, said hosting the event was both “an honour and a responsibility.”
She emphasized that students constantly question whether their qualifications will be recognized regionally and internationally, a concern quality assurance directly addresses.
“Quality assurance is not simply an administrative exercise. It is the foundation of credibility, employability, and trust,” Minister Jallah said, stressing that graduates, parents, and employers all rely on the integrity of higher education systems. In remarks, Cuttington University President Dr. Romelle A. Horton described the presence of delegates at the West African Anglophone Quality Assurance Network (WAAQAN) second annual conference as a “testament to our shared commitment” to advancing quality assurance in higher education across the region. She noted that the conference theme, Improving Higher Education Institutions Ecosystem through Quality Assurance, provided a vital platform for collaboration, knowledge sharing and innovative strategies to strengthen higher education systems.
