21 August 2024
New pathways for practice of profession and study are now available to Filipinos in New Zealand through the latest agreement between the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) that seeks to improve education and qualification systems in the two countries.
CHED Secretary Popoy De Vera and NZQA Chief Executive Grant Klinkum met yesterday at the NZQA headquarters in Wellington to discuss the qualification frameworks for the employment of people from either New Zealand or the Philippines.
“This cooperation is a ground-breaking success in terms of putting together qualifications framework in the Philippines and New Zealand. This has never been done in the history of CHED. Furthermore, this is a response to the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in the 2024 SONA to strengthen the internationalization of Philippine higher education and to assist Filipinos working abroad get just compensation,” De Vera said.
“We thank Dr. Grant Klinkum and the Philippine Embassy in New Zealand led by H.E. Kira Christianne Azucena for collaborating with us to ensure the achievement of our joint objective,” he added.
“Internationalization of higher education is among the key objectives of the Philippine national government. Hence, we in the Philippine Embassy in New Zealand actively support relevant initiatives and facilitate communication between CHED and the agencies and institutions in New Zealand. We aim to strengthen the long-standing people-to-people ties of both countries,” Azucena said.
The CHED-NZQA education cooperation supports qualification recognition between the Philippines and New Zealand to enable employment of people holding a Bachelor’s Degree from both countries.
“In January 2024, we developed a joint comparability report that provides a deep understanding of the Bachelor’s Degrees from either the Philippines or New Zealand, their position in each economy’s education system, and the quality assurance systems that underpin the qualifications. This meeting with the NZQA today will expedite the process, provide clearer comparability of qualifications, and robust mobility of professionals,” De Vera said.
The mobility of professionals will center on the fields of healthcare, nursing, engineering, and teaching education which are the most in-demand and mobile sectors.
Furthermore, the cooperation will facilitate the admission of students from the Philippines and New Zealand to post-graduate education in both countries.
The CHED delegation in New Zealand is set to explore more collaborations with institutions and agencies in New Zealand until August 23 to boost the internationalization of Philippine higher education.
De Vera was joined in the high-level meeting by the Philippine Embassy in New Zealand Ambassador Kira Christianne Azucena, Education Attaché Maricon Esguerra, Dr. Reynaldo Vea who is also the Chair of the Technical Working Group for Comparability Project between CHED and NZQA, and CHED OPSD Directors Cherrie Melanie Ancheta-Diego and Aline Magalong.
(SIGNED)
J. PROSPERO E. DE VERA III, DPA
Chairman
Commission on Higher Education