QAHE Insights

The International Association for Quality Assurance in Pre‑Tertiary & Higher Education (QAHE) welcomes the recent review article published in the World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews (WJARR), DOI: 10.30574/wjarr.2024.24.1.3125, titled “Improving health outcomes in Cameroon through competency‑based curricula and stakeholder engagement in accreditation.” The paper provides a considered analysis of how strengthened accreditation frameworks, competency‑based curricula and active stakeholder participation can contribute to a better‑trained health workforce and improved population health — themes that are central to QAHE’s work on quality assurance and programmatic accreditation.

The WJARR article highlights several issues familiar to international quality assurance practitioners: the need for clear national accreditation guidelines, discipline‑specific professional councils, capacity building for regulators and providers, and mechanisms for ongoing monitoring and improvement. QAHE strongly endorses these priorities. Our experience accrediting vocational, professional and higher education programmes indicates that well‑designed competency frameworks, combined with transparent external review and constructive follow‑up, are effective levers for improving graduate competence and employer confidence.

One useful contribution of the WJARR review is its comparative perspective, drawing lessons from neighbouring countries with more mature accreditation systems. Comparative analysis is particularly valuable because it underscores that accreditation is not a one‑size‑fits‑all activity: legal frameworks, institutional capacity, and workforce needs shape how standards are implemented. QAHE’s approach to programmatic accreditation — which includes contextual self‑evaluation, peer review by subject experts and recommendations focused on measurable improvements — can be adapted to national contexts such as Cameroon’s while remaining aligned with global good practice.

The paper rightly emphasises stakeholder engagement as a core element of sustainable accreditation systems. Involving government agencies, professional bodies, employers, training institutions and students helps ensure that standards are relevant, credible and practically implementable. QAHE’s own experience shows that stakeholder buy‑in improves the legitimacy of accreditation decisions and increases the likelihood that recommended improvements are put into practice. We therefore support the article’s call for capacity building targeted not only at institutions but also at regulators, professional councils and external reviewers.

There are also areas where the WJARR review points to opportunities for operational refinement. For example, implementing competency‑based curricula requires investment in teacher training, assessment literacy and infrastructure for practical skills training — elements that must be costed and sequenced in national rollout plans. Accreditation systems, in turn, need to include mechanisms for verifying practical competence (e.g., workplace‑based assessments, objective structured clinical examinations) rather than relying solely on document review. QAHE encourages the integration of outcome‑focused indicators into accreditation standards so that accreditation decisions are linked to demonstrable learning and service delivery outcomes.

Finally, the review’s recommendations on continuous improvement and monitoring align with QAHE’s emphasis on accreditation as a developmental process rather than a one‑off audit. Accreditation should set expectations, catalyse institutional change and provide a clear roadmap for follow‑up. Where possible, evidence‑based case studies showing how accreditation interventions have improved graduate readiness, employment or health service quality would strengthen advocacy for reform and help secure political and financial support.

QAHE congratulates the authors for a timely and policy‑relevant review. We stand ready to share further expertise, tools and capacity‑building support with partners in Cameroon and across the region to help translate the paper’s recommendations into practical reforms. For information on QAHE’s programmatic accreditation for professional and vocational programmes, approaches to competency verification, and capacity‑building services, please visit www.qahe.org or contact us at editorial@qahe.org.