Quality Assurance in Ethiopia’s Higher Education Institutions: A Systematic Review of Literature

Abstract

The objective of this review was to critically examine scholarly literature on quality assurance (QA) in Ethiopian higher education and thereby provide readers with a state-of-the-art understanding of the subject with future research direction. To this end, a systematic review method (evidence synthesis technique) was employed. Major data sources were journal articles, dissertations, theses, conference papers, national QA policy documents, and higher education proclamations. Findings of the studies suggest that the introduction of QA to Ethiopia’s HE is a recent phenomenon that is affected both by external factors, like international discourses on quality in HE, and internal pressing factors. The legal and regulatory frameworks of QA are enshrined in the HE proclamations of 2003, 2009 & 2019 and the national Quality Audit guidelines (HERQA guideline); both IQA & EQA methods were applied in the HEIs. QA largely focused on the input and process domains giving little attention to the output domain. A robust QA system is lacking. The implementation of QA has been fettered by challenges and problems related to policy, structural and functional issues. Accordingly, the existing QA lacks conceptual, legislative and structural comprehensiveness, and thus, can be labeled as a system in the infancy stage. Recommendations for policymakers, regulators, and leaders of higher education institutions include creating a robust, dynamic, and responsive system by eliminating the existing deficiencies and anomalies of the system. Finally, this paper winds up by readdressing gaps identified in the studies as areas of further investigation and interventions.