the Executive Regulation of Law 82 for the Year 2006 Regarding the Establishment of the National Authority for Quality Assurance and Accreditation of Education (NAQAAE)
No. 25 for the Year 2007 on Issuing the Executive Regulation of Law 82 for the Year 2006 Regarding the Establishment of the National Authority for Quality Assurance and Accreditation of Education (NAQAAE)
The President, On reviewing the Constitution; Law 103 for the year 1961 on the reorganization of El-Azhar and its institutions; Law on the organization of the faculties and higher institutes affiliated to the Ministry of Higher Education issued by virtue of Law 49 for the year 1963; Public Agencies Law issued by virtue of Law 61 for the year 1963; Law 52 for the year 1970 on the organization of private higher institutes; University Organization Law issued by virtue of Law 49 for the year 1972; Law 53 for the year 1973 on the State’s balance sheet; Civil Servant Law issued by virtue of Law 47 for the year 1978; Education Law issued by virtue of Law 139 for the year 1981; Law 101 for the year 2006 on the establishment of private universities; Law 82 for the year 2006 on the establishment of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation; And after having the approval of the Cabinet in its session held on 30/11/2006,
Decreed
Article (1): The appended rules of the executive regulation of the law on the establishment of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation are to be in force, and all that contradicts with its rules is to be invalidated.
Article (2): This decree is to be published in the official newspaper, and is to be in force the next day after its date of publication.
Issued by the Presidency on Moharam 5, 1428 H., January 24, 2007A.D.
Hosny Mubarak
Official Newspaper – No. 4 (Cont.) – January 5, 2007
Executive Regulation of Law 82 for the Year 2006 On the Establishment of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation
Article (1): The benchmarks stipulated by Law 82 for the year 2006 must involve the quality and accreditation standards for educational institutions as well as the quality and accreditation standards for educational programs. The benchmarks are set by specialized committees which are formed based on a decision made by the board of directors of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation. The committee is composed of an odd number of members, i.e., less than 7 members and no more than fifteen members from among those who are specialized and experienced in studying and setting these benchmarks. The committee must involve representatives of the concerned agency or ministry, stakeholders and beneficiaries of the educational service. Among stakeholders and beneficiaries are trade unions, undergraduate students, graduate students, parents, and concerned production and service institutions. The decision on the formation of the committee determines the system of its work and the rewards to be granted to its members. The committee can seek the assistance of experts and specialists in performing its job and can form subcommittees from among its members or others to perform certain jobs.
Article (2): The benchmarks set by the specialized committees and stipulated by Article (1) of this regulation are to be approved by the board of directors of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation.
Article (3): The benchmarks are reviewed every five years at most or when necessary or upon the request of concerned agencies, institutions or beneficiaries. This is done through the specialized committees stipulated by Article (1) of this regulation.
Article (4): An educational institutional has to set a certain level of institutional and academic standards for itself in accordance with its stated mission. The National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation accredits these standards provided that the level of these standards is not lower than the benchmarks stipulated by Article (1) of this regulation.
Article (5): An educational institutional which wishes to be awarded an accreditation certificate must have awarded an academic degree in one of its educational programs at least once or must have completed an integrated course. Its regular records must indicate that it has a strategic plan, an internal auditing system, annual self-evaluation systems and reports, and plans for improving its performance.
Article (6): The following procedures and rules must be followed if an educational institution governed by the rules of Law 82 for the year 2006 is to obtain an accreditation certificate:
The educational institution makes an application to the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation or its designated branch expressing its desire and willingness to be accredited. Documents must be enclosed with this application indicating that the institution meets the two conditions stipulated by Article (5) of this regulation and that authority to which this institution is directly affiliated approves of this application.
If it is evident for the Authority that the application submitted by the institution meets the two conditions and the approval stipulated by item (a), the institution is notified in writing within the period of time specified by the board of directors provided that it does not exceed 30 days after the application is submitted or completed, whichever is later, so that the institution can go on with other procedures within the period specified by the Authority.
After being notified, the educational institution pays the accreditation fees determined by the Authority’s board of directors, and within 30 days after payment of fees the Authority must provide the institution with the required forms and data to proceed with the evaluation and accreditation process and the guide which will help the institution fill in these forms and prepare the required data.
In coordination with the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation, the educational institution must provide the data and studies which indicate that it has met the standards set for accreditation, especially the following:
the institution’s vision and mission;
the self-evaluation study conducted by the institution;
the institution improvement plan and the results of its implementation;
the institution’s evaluation and quality control systems; and any data, studies or other documents that may be required by the Authority.
The National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation announces if it will undertake evaluation and accreditation by itself or if the evaluation will be undertaken by an individual, a civil society organization or other entity authorized to practice evaluation. In the latter case, the Authority determines who will undertake the evaluation process.
The entity in charge of evaluating the educational process, be it the Authority or anyone authorized to do so, must inform the educational institution of the procedures to be followed to accomplish the evaluation process and the dates of the visits to be made by their designated personnel to the institution.
If the evaluation process is undertaken by one of those authorized to practice evaluation, their competent personnel must report the evaluation results reached as per this regulation to the Authority within 30 days after evaluation has been accomplished.
The National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation informs the educational institution under evaluation of the evaluation results by registered mail with acknowledgement of receipt within 60 days after evaluation has been accomplished according to the following:
If the evaluation indicates that the institution has met the established standards, the educational institution is awarded the accreditation certificate, and the Authority must announce this decision in the ways it specifies and must send a copy of it to concerned ministries and authorities, allowing all to have a look at it.
If the educational institution does not meet all the standards, it specifies a period of time it sees necessary to redress the shortcomings, provided that it does not exceed the period stipulated by the law and the Authority clearly identifies the areas which have not met the standards and how to improve in order to reach the required quality level.
If the institution does not obtain the accreditation certificate due to its inability to meet the established standards as indicated by the reports of evaluation committees, the status of the institution is referred to the concerned minister, provided that the referral decision includes the following:
the degree of deficit in meeting standards (moderate / severe);
the standards which the institution has not applied; and – What the institution has to do so that it can obtain the accreditation certificate.
An educational institution which has not met accreditation standards, according to item “h/3”, cannot apply for the certificate again until it gets the approval of the authority to which it is directly affiliated, and this authority must assist the institution to obtain the accreditation certificate after meeting the prerequi******* – The board of directors of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation issues a manual which guides through the executive procedures of evaluation and accreditation.
Article (7): The accreditation certificate awarded to the educational institution by the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation is valid for five years. It is renewed by the same procedures and rules stipulated by Article (6) of this regulation based on an application submitted to the Authority within the first month of the last year of the validity period of the accreditation certificate. The last report of accreditation committees on the institution must be enclosed with this application.
Article (8): The educational institution to which an accreditation certificate is awarded continues, throughout the period of the validity of the certificate, to be subject to periodical monitoring and revision through the annual self-reports submitted by the institution and the visits made by the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation or whoever it authorizes to do so to make sure that the activity, work system and educational programs of the institution continue to meet the previously fulfilled evaluation and accreditation standards. Monitoring and revision are done in accordance with the system set by the Authority. The concerned ministry, authority or beneficiaries may ask the Authority to reconsider the validity of the accreditation certificate when the educational institution violates the established standards.
Article (9): If the monitoring, revision or inspection of the educational institution which is awarded an accreditation certificate indicates that the institution has not met one of the conditions set for accreditation or has committed any violations or made any changes in its activity, its work system or the educational programs it offers, thus making it not meet the education quality and accreditation standards, then the board of directors of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation, through an informed decision, can suspend the accreditation certificate for a period of time it specifies or revoke the certificate depending on the grossness of the violation. The Authority’s board of directors must revoke the accreditation certificate if the educational institution fundamentally changes its purpose or if the data or documents submitted by the institution to obtain the accreditation certificate prove to be untrue or if the institution obtains accreditation certificate through fraud.
Article (10): The National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation must notify the educational institution, by registered mail with acknowledgement of receipt, of the decision on the suspension or revocation of the accreditation certificate within fifteen days after this decision has been made. This notification must include the causes of the decision, and the Authority must announce this decision the same way it has announced the decision of issuing the accreditation certificate for the institution.
Article (11): The board of directors of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation must revoke the decision of suspending the accreditation certificate if it has been proved that the educational institution has eliminated the causes of this decision. The accreditation certificate awarded to the educational institution whose accreditation certificate has been revoked is issued after following the procedures and rules stipulated by Article (6) of this regulation.
Article (12): The educational institution can make complaint to the board of directors of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation about the decision of refusing to award it the accreditation certificate or renew it or about the decision of suspending or revoking the certificate issued for the institution, provided that the institution pays the petition charges determined by the Authority’s board of directors. This petition must be made within thirty days after the institution is notified of the decision.
Article (13): The petitions stipulated in Article (12) of this regulation are looked into by a committee formed by virtue of a decision made by the Chairman of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation. This committee is headed by one of the deputies of the chairman of the Authority and has three members who have not previously participated in evaluating the educational institution making the petition. These members are selected by the Authority’s board of directors. In addition, the committee includes a member from the State Council who must be at least a judge of a court. The term of the committee membership is four years that is renewable.
Article (14): The Petition Committee with all its members must meet and make its recommendation regarding the petition by the majority of votes at most within ninety days after papers have been referred to it. The Committee must submit its report on the petition to the board of directors of the National Authority for Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation. The board’s decision regarding the petition is final and must include causes. The institution must be notified, by registered mail with acknowledgement of receipt, of the decision within thirty days after it has been taken. If the petition made by the educational institution is accepted, the petition charges must be returned to it.
Article (15): Anyone who has business, agency or consultation relation with the educational institution, has a share in the capital of the institution or is related to the top management of the institution or its owners up to the third degree is not allowed to undertake any of its evaluation and accreditation work. The same is true for the members of the boards of trustees, the members of the institution’s board of directors, principals, teachers, faculty members and anyone who is a party to a dispute or strife with the institution.
Article (16): The team in charge of evaluation work is committed to disclose all the facts and circumstances which may affect his/her impartiality and autonomy or which may create justifiable doubts about his/her impartiality.
Article (17): The circulation of any data or information about the educational institution that is necessary for the evaluation process is limited exclusively to those in charge of the evaluation and accreditation process. This data and information must be circulated and kept in a way that secures its privacy and prevents it from reaching those who are not concerned, according to the system set by the Authority’s board of directors.
Article (18): The Authority’s competent personnel or those authorized to undertake evaluation work are not allowed to disclose the confidential data and information about the educational institutions to those who are not concerned with the evaluation of these institution without the explicit written permission of the institution’s legal representative.
Article (19): The educational institutions working in Egypt which are not governed by the rules of Law 82 for the year 2006 and the Arab and foreign educational institutions not working in Egypt may ask the Authority to undertake evaluation and accreditation work for them. In this case, all the procedures and rules mentioned in this regulation will be applicable provided that they do not contradict with the nature of these institutions and that these institutions are considered not controlled or governed to any supervisory authority in Egypt.
Article (20): Individuals, civil society organizations and others, including universities (specialized faculties) and non-governmental organizations are awarded licensure by the National Agency in order to ensure education quality and accreditation by practicing evaluation work and making revision visits to educational institutions by those who meet the conditions and specifications decided on by the Authority’s board of directors.
Article (21): Individuals, civil society organizations and others wishing to evaluate educational institutions must make an application to the Authority indicating this wish. Documents and papers indicating that they meet the conditions and specifications decided on by the Authority’s board of directors must be enclosed with the application, and the Authority must consider this application and submit it to the board of directors. If licensure is declined, the causes of this declination must be indicated, and the applicant of licensure must be informed of the declination by registered mail with acknowledgement of receipt. The person concerned can make a petition complaining of the declination decision within thirty days after s/he has been notified of the decision. This petition must be settled by the board of directors.
Article (22): Individuals, civil society organizations and others authorized to evaluate educational institutions must be registered in a special record prepared by the Authority for this purpose.
Article (23): Registration of the individuals, civil society organizations and others authorized to do evaluation work is revoked if they no longer meet one of the conditions set for licensure.
Article (24): Licensure to practice evaluation work is valid for five years and may be renewed upon the request of the applicant at least one month before the licensure expires.
Article (25): Each of the departments stipulated in Article (19) of Law 82 for the year 2006 is responsible for performing the tasks respective to each:
Development and Monitoring Department: It is responsible for:
Suggesting the policies and strategies for education quality assurance as well as the annual plan and action plans for accomplishing the Authority’s strategic plan.
Preparing plans for the Authority’s monitoring of its branches in the governorates, setting rules and procedures for periodical monitoring for accreditation and revision and developing them continuously in the light of changes.
Reporting the results of monitoring and evaluating educational institutions to the concerned deputy chairman of the Authority’s board of directors.
Organizing local conferences to be attended by those concerned with educational institutions to explain the lessons learned from evaluation and monitoring processes with the aim of improving the developing performance in order to promote quality.
Evaluating the performance of the Authority, including different departments and personnel.
Conducting studies and research to develop and promote the Authority’s performance.
Specifications and Quality Standard Setting Department: It is responsible for:
Setting quality standards for educational institutions provided that they are not lower than benchmarks and presenting them to the board of directors.
Establishing measures for the indicators of quality and institutional accreditation.
Reviewing and developing quality measures in accordance with different educational settings.
Accreditation Department: It is responsible for:
Receiving applications for accreditation and reviewing all required documents.
Setting the rules for selecting individuals, civil society organizations and others to participate in the evaluation process.
Nominating individuals, civil society organizations and others in preparation for awarding them licensure to evaluate the educational institution and keep their own registration record.
Providing guidelines and specific steps for those in charge of the evaluation process, providing technical and administrative advice that may be helpful to the educational institutions wishing to obtain the accreditation certificate, and working towards disseminating the quality culture in collaboration with all civil society organizations.
Suggesting mechanisms for evaluating educational institutions in the context of quality standards of all aspects of the system; i.e., administration, academic achievement (examination results), the institution’s overall effectiveness in achieving the tasks assigned to it and its relationship with its affiliate levels, civil society organizations, services, student activities, resources, laboratories, new technologies, equipment and tools, social relations, and institutional climate motivating academic achievement.
Preparing accreditation certificates and the draft decisions on renewing or revoking them in accordance with the decision of the Authority’s board of directors and presenting them to the chairman of the board of directors for issuing them.
Information Department: It is responsible for:
Developing a database about all educational institutions in collaboration with concerned State bodies or institutions.
Analyzing data, manipulating it statistically and presenting it to the Authority’s Accreditation Sector to help with taking decisions on evaluation and issuing accreditation certificates.
Publishing reports through the Authority’s website so that all educational institutions can benefit by them.
Publishing international developments in the field of updating quality standards and indicators.
Financial and Administrative Affairs Department: It is responsible for:
Identifying the Authority’s administrative and financial needs and taking actions to meet them.
Preparing the Authority’s annual budgets and final accounts.
Preparing contracts for the Authority’s staff or those seconded to work for it and suggesting their pay.
Collecting fees of accreditation, renewal and complaints about the Authority’s decisions and the charges of the services provided by the Authority.
Preparing the Authority’s personnel and financial affairs regulations.
Petitions Department: It is responsible for:
Preparing the records needed for registering the petitions received by the Authority.
Considering the petitions made by individuals, civil society organizations and others regarding applications for candidacy for undertaking evaluation work and presenting the results to the Authority’s board of directors to take decisions on them.
Informing educational institutions of the results of the examination of petitions.
Informing educational institutions of any data or correspondence in the light of the examination of petitions.
Training Department: It is responsible for:
Identifying the needs of all cadres working in the field of evaluation.
Designing and implementing programs which satisfy all training needs.
Developing refreshing programs in accordance with new developments.
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