MQA Partners QQI To Strengthen Cooperation In Quality Assurance

KUALA LUMPUR, May 4 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) and the Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) signed a memorandum of arrangement today, to strengthen cooperation in the field of quality assurance.

MQA in a statement Wednesday said the memorandum was signed by its chief executive officer, Datuk Prof Dr Rujhan Mustafa and QQI's chief executive Dr Padraig Walsh while Dr Hazman Shah Abdullah and Dr Bryan Maguire represented the quality assurance sectors in both these agencies.

The signing ceremony held in Petaling Jaya near here, was witnessed by Higher Education Director-General Datuk Prof Dr Asma Ismail and a representative of the Embassy of Ireland in Malaysia, Kerry O'Sullivan.

The memorandum aims to strengthen cooperation through the exchange and sharing of information, exchange of experts and officials, as well as cooperation in the accreditation assessment activities.

Maguire said the agreement reflected the high level of confidence and commitment of both agencies to ensure that students received quality higher education.

Rujhan hoped the two agencies could implement a comparability project quality assurance system and a qualification framework to facilitate the recognition of qualifications offered in Malaysia and Ireland, as well as increase student mobility in the two countries.

The signing ceremony was held in the EU Support to Higher Education in ASEAN Region workshop for the first time.

The one-day workshop was attended by, among others, representatives of quality assurance agencies, professional organisations, higher education institutions, student representatives and alumni from Malaysia, the Philippines, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland and Cambodia.

-- BERNAMA