A delegation of the Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA), led by Professor Hasnije Ilazi, President of the Board of KAA and Naim Gashi, General Director of KAA, have conducted an important visit to Bonn and Cologne, Germany. The purpose of this visit was to expedite the process of AKA’s membership in ENQA and its registration in EQAR, to enhance the exchange of knowledge and experiences, and to strengthening the cooperation between the two countries in the field of accreditation and quality assurance in higher education.

During the visit, President Ilazi talked anout the role of KAA in the internationalization of the higher education system in Kosovo. She discussed about the achievements of KAA in fulfilling the recommendations set by the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA). President Ilazi also presented the future perspectives and plans of the agency and described a visionary approach for the improvement of higher education in Kosovo.

The delegation from Kosovo was received by Doris Herrmann, Executive Director of the Agency for Quality Assurance through the Accreditation of Study Programs (AQAS) and at the same time a member of the ENQA Board.

In this meeting, support was requested from AQAS and director Herrmann for the acceleration of the membership process of KAA in ENQA and EQAR.

Director Herrmann has offered the full support of AQAS, as the largest accreditation agency in Germany, for KAA’s path towards implementing ESG standards and returning to quality assurance mechanisms in Europe.

In addition, this meeting was used to discuss the level of quality in higher education in the region, so that quality criteria do not prevent the implementation of ESG standards.

The Kosovo delegation also met with Katrin Mayer-Lantermann, Head of Legal and International Affairs at the German Accreditation Council. She provided an overview of German experiences and best practices in improving the quality of higher education.

Naim Gashi, General Director of KAA, gave a broad overview of the valuable cooperation between KAA and German and European counterparts in the field of accreditation. Director Gashi underlined the visible results of this cooperation, emphasizing the role in advancing the quality of higher education in Kosovo. This fruitful collaboration with counterpart agencies has enabled a transfer of knowledge that has greatly helped in the continuous improvement of the higher education landscape in the country.

The visit of the Kosovo delegation has initiated a dynamic exchange of knowledge and expertise which promises to help in enhancing quality of higher education in Kosovo. This positive interaction has paved the way for a stronger partnership and the creation of a shared vision for the future of higher education.