Highlights

The World Bank/Center for Mediterranean Integration MENA Regional Program on Higher Education is organizing the 4th International Conference focusing on development of information sharing mechanisms and systems to inform policy makers on improving governance and quality assurance in higher education in the MENA region to be held from May 12-14, 2015, in Beirut, Lebanon. The conference is designed to provide an opportunity for participating universities and other tertiary education institutions from the MENA region and beyond to learn from each other’s experiences and to discuss along with government officials, quality assurance agencies and other local, regional and international organizations a broad range of issues related to improving governance in tertiary education through information sharing and addressing issues of quality assurance and the employability of graduates. 

This year’s conference comes as a fourth in a series of regional conferences organized by the WB/CMI Regional Higher Education Program. The 2011 workshop in Cairo introduced the University Governance Screening Card (UGSC) Benchmarking Tool and set the ground for the first round of the UGSC implementation in four MENA countries. The 2012 conference in Rabat – organized in collaboration with ISESCO and the British Council – explored the lessons learned from using the UGSC and highlighted case studies of institutional reforms; however, it also launched the Regional Higher Education Network comprised of the 100 participating universities from seven MENA countries (Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Morocco, West Bank & Gaza, Tunisia). The 2014 conference in Tunis focused on the nexus between quality assurance and governance, in an attempt to enable universities and higher education sectors more broadly move ‘from vision to action’. It also provided an opportunity for members of the regional university network to engage in the discussion of the action plans they had developed building upon the results of the UGSC. 

Join us in Beirut, contribute to the reform of tertiary education and join our network of tertiary education practitioners, policy makers and leaders! 

Objectives 

The conference builds upon the program’s previous initiatives with the objective to:

- First, bring together universities, governments, quality assurance bodies, experts and other key players from the MENA region and beyond with the goal of joint (and peer) learning on the development of information sharing mechanisms and systems to inform policy makers on improving governance and quality assurance in higher education

- Second, serve as a capacity building exercise for institutional leaders and practitioners in areas such as, but not limited to, institutional planning, performance assessment, development of indicators, financial management, etc.

- Third, support the dialogue between and among governments and institutions particularly on developing national indicators systems and addressing the pressing issue of the employability of graduates of higher education institutions

- Finally, attract the participation from institutional representatives from MENA countries not yet participating in the project, and from other regions, especially Africa and Latin America.

Co-Conveners 

The conference is jointly organized by The World Bank and the Centre for Mediterranean Integration.

Conference Material

Plenary Session I “Empowering institutions with information: Global, regional and local perspectives”
Chair: Francisco Marmolejo, World Bank
• Eva Egron-Polak, Secretary General, International Association of Universities. France
• Ahmad Jammal, Director General, Directorate of Higher Education, Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Lebanon

Plenary Session II. Information sharing: Why it matters and how?
Chair: Maha Merezak, ISESCO
• Dakmara Georgescu, Program Specialist, UNESCO
• Najla Romdhane, Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Tunisia

A1: ACCOUNTABILITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION AND THE IMPORTANCE OF INFORMATION
Moderator: Hana A. El-Ghali, World Bank
• La gouvernance des systèmes d’information pour une meilleure gouvernance des universités. Mohamed Mars, Rector, Université de Gabès, Tunisia
• Measuring and evaluating the performance efficiency of the faculties of the University of Basra and using the systematic data analysis and the hierarchical sequential approach. Mohammed Abood Tahir Almadloom, Head of Business Administration Department, Basra University, Iraq
• Reflections on Leading Changes and Enhanced Governance: The Experience of USEK. Georges Yahchouchi, Deputy President for Quality Assurance and Teaching and Learning, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Lebanon

A2. INDICATORS SYSTEMS I
Moderator: Lea Iungmann, World Bank
• The Impact of University Governance in MENA at Al-Quds Open University, Samir Najdi, Vice-President for Academic Affairs, Al-Quds Open University, Palestine
• L’implémentation de l’assurance qualité dans l’enseignement supérieur en Algérie. Sadek Bakouche, President CIAQES, Algeria

A3. EMPLOYABILITY OF UNIVERSITY GRADUATES
Moderator: Karim Nasr, Balamand University
• Good governance and professional integration of university graduates. Youssef Ben Othman, Vice-President, Tunis Al-Manar University, Tunisia
• Follow-up on the graduates at the University of Mustansiriya. Aysar Thamer Naser, Lecturer, Al-Mustansariyya University, Iraq
• Résultats et enseignements d'une enquête sur le devenir des diplômés de la première promotion post-réforme. Mohamed Lerari, Quality Assurance Responsible, ENSTP, Algeria

A4. QUALITY ASSURANCE I
Moderator: Amira Kazem, World Bank
• Quality Assurance for Higher Education in Iraq & Kurdistan Region. Anwar Amin Ahmed, President, Salaheddine University, Iraq
• Internal Quality Assurance Mechanism at IUG. Hatem Elaydi, Assistant Vice-President for Academic Affairs, Islamic University of Gaza, Palestine
• Ghassan Hamid Abdel-Majeed, Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Iraq

Plenary Session IIIB. A Dialogue with Quality Assurance Leaders
Chair: Dakmara Georgescu, UNESCO
• El-Mokhtar Bakkour, Director for Legal Affairs, Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Morocco

Plenary Session V. The Quality Imperative: How to and When?
Chair: Gail Campbell, British Council
• Maha Merezak, Program Specialist, Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO)
• Karma El-Hassan, Director, Office of Institutional Research and Assessment, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
• Stephen Jackson, Associate Director - International, The Quality Assurance Agency, United Kingdom
• Leila Triki, Vice-Dean, Mediterranean School of Business, Tunisia

B1. CASE STUDIES IN STRATEGIC PLANNING
Moderator: Leila Triki, MSB
• Strategic Planning: Opportunities and Challenges. Diane Nauffal, Executive Director, Department of Institutional Research and Assessment, Lebanese American University, Lebanon
• From the UGSC to the university action plan: establishing a continuum of informed processes, Mohamed Miliani, Quality Assurance Responsible, ORAN 2 Mohamed Ben Ahmed, Algeria
• Strategic Planning and Future challenges. Hayman Metwally, Director of Strategic Planning Unit, Cairo University, Egypt

B2. EMPLOYABILITY OF GRADUATES
Moderator: Sally Ward, British Council
• A Study on the Readiness for Employability of Engineering Graduates in the MENA Region. Karim Nasr, Assistant to the President for Academic Advancement, Balamand University, Lebanon
• Organizational Learnings in a Journey towards Excellence in Graduates’ Employability. Amine Bensaid, President, Mundiapolis University, Morocco
• The experience of AlmaLaurea in MENA countries. Enrico Dongiovanni, International Relations & Projects, AlmaLaurea Interuniversity Consortium, Italy

B3. BENCHMARKING RESEARCH ACTIVITY
• Achieving research excellence through data, benchmarking and evidence. A Workshop. Tayfun Basal, Elsevier

B4. INFORMATION SHARING AND IMPROVED GOVERNANCE: RELEVANT LESSONS LEARNED BEYOND MENA
Moderator: Francisco Marmolejo, World Bank
• Post-socialist transition in higher education. Alexander Sidorkin, Director of Institute of Education, National Research University-Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia
• Experiences in strengthening information sharing systems and quality assurance in Mexico. Jose Alfonso Esparza-Ortiz, Rector, Autonomous University of Puebla, Mexico

CI. QUALITY ASSURANCE II
Moderator: Diane Nauffal, Lebanese American University
• L’Université Chouaïb Doukkali sur la voie de l’Assurance Qualité et de la Bonne Gouvernance. Rachid Hilal, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Development, Université Chouaïb Doukkali, Morocco
• Improving the University Governance through the Promotion of a Quality Culture and Institutional Self-Reflection: The case of the Ecole Polytechnique d’Architecture et d’Urbanisme (EPAU) in Algiers. Kahina Djiar, Quality Assurance Responsible, EPAU, Algeria
• Implementation of Quality Assurance and Accreditation Standards for ODL universities through university governance, institutional evaluation and business processes. Yousef Sabbah, Director of Quality Department, Al-Quds Open University, Palestine

C2. FROM PLANNING TO IMPLEMENTATION
Moderator: Georges Yahchouchi, USEK
• The readiness of Anbar University for quality assurance and accreditation in accordance with the Standards Association of Arab Universities : A Case Study, Abdulsalam Al-Noori, Manager of Performance Evaluation, Anbar University, Iraq
• Quelle stratégie pour la mise en oeuvre d’un référentiel qualité dans le domaine de la gouvernace en Algérie? Mohamed Amine Allal, Quality Assurance Responsible, Université de Tlemcen, Algeria

C3. PLANNING STRATEGICALLY, TACTICALLY, AND CONTINGENTLY
Moderator: Mohamed Miliani, Oran 2
• La capacité d’accueil de l’Université Cadi Ayyad face au problème de massification des étudiants, Khalid Berrada, Professor & Abdellatif Miraoui, President, Université Cadi Ayyad, Morocco
• Sharing is Caring. Elham S. Hasham, Associate Professor, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Notre Dame University, Lebanon
• The current status of Sohag University ... and future prospects. Abdel Aal Abdel Kahir, Director of Quality Assurance Center, Sohag University, Egypt

C4. PARTICIPATION IN DECISION MAKING WITHIN HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS
Moderator: Lea Iungmann, World Bank
• Participation à la gouvernance d’un établissement public d’enseignement supérieur: Quelques éléments de réflexion. Abdel-Majid Djenane, President, Sétif 1, Algeria

Closing Plenary Session. Towards more accountable and proactive higher education institutions: The way forward. 
Chair: Juan Manuel Moreno, World Bank
• John Gabriel, Professor, London Metropolitan University, United Kingdom