With the invitation of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) and the World Bank, under the patronage of the Ministry of Education and Science of North Macedonia, the Director General of the Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA), Naim Gashi, participated in the Regional Conference on Quality Assurance in Higher Education, held on 26–27 March 2026 in Skopje.

The conference, titled “Bridging Futures: Internationalisation of Higher Education in the Western Balkans and Southeast Europe”, brought together high-level institutional representatives, international experts, and policymakers from across the region and beyond, focusing on internationalisation, academic mobility, quality assurance, governance, and financing in higher education.

In his presentation, Mr. Gashi shared Kosovo’s successful experiences in advancing quality assurance systems and the internationalisation of higher education, emphasizing that Kosovo has established a national consensus on quality. He noted that this approach has led to the implementation of the European Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance (ESG) and the registration of KAA in the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR), making it the only agency from the Western Balkans listed in the register.

The Director General of KAA underlined that regional cooperation is essential for enhancing the quality of study programmes and recommended that ESG standards should serve as the foundation for ensuring quality across higher education systems.

Mr. Gashi further highlighted that the profound reforms undertaken in Kosovo and the application of high-quality standards have directly contributed to improving the international reputation and rankings of higher education institutions in Kosovo.

He also stressed that, through the provision of high-quality study programmes, Kosovo has become increasingly attractive for private companies offering services to European and global markets.

As part of the conference agenda, discussions focused on key topics such as mobility and talent circulation, partnerships for skills and innovation, as well as the role of quality assurance, governance, and financing mechanisms in advancing the internationalisation of higher education.

During his visit to North Macedonia, Mr. Gashi also held meetings with the Vice President of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA), Patrick Van den Bosch, as well as with his counterpart from North Macedonia, Hristina Serafimovska, where they discussed opportunities to further strengthen cooperation in support of quality in higher education.