This week, from July 28th to 30th, Kenya will be playing host to the 7th African Continental Qualifications Framework (ACQF) Forum under the theme "Building Future-Ready Qualifications Systems for Africa". The Forum will bring together National Qualifications Frameworks from across the continent, representatives of the African Union and Regional Economic Communities (RECs), international organisations and development partners, and experts and practitioners working in qualifications, recognition, skills development, and labour mobility.
The 7th ACQF Forum marks an important milestone in the implementation of the African Continental Qualifications Framework (ACQF) and the transition of the ACQF from policy to practice. Two major highlights of the event will be: presentation and endorsement of the first reports referencing national qualifications frameworks to the ACQF and launch of the Qualifications and Credentials Platform (QCP), a single trusted, authoritative source of information on qualifications across Africa.
This marks the operationalisation of the continental framework and establishes a common language for comparing qualifications while respecting each country's education and training systems. The platform also provides a single, authoritative source of information on qualifications across the continent, making it easier for employers, regulators, education providers and learners to verify credentials, reduce fraud and support recognition decisions with confidence.
The conversations about African integration have focused on physical infrastructure such as roads, railways, ports, pipelines and border posts. These investments remain indispensable, but they are no longer sufficient. The true engine of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is the movement of goods just as much as it is the movement of people, skills, knowledge and innovation.
Africa is home to the world's youngest population, a generation rich in talent, ambition and entrepreneurial spirit. Yet millions of Africans have encountered an invisible barrier whenever they sought opportunities beyond their national borders. Their qualifications, however rigorously earned, were often difficult to compare, verify or recognise in another country. As a result, skilled professionals have faced costly and time-consuming re-certification processes, employers have struggled to validate competencies, and learners have found it difficult to transfer credits or continue their education across borders. This is an economic constraint.
When African Union Member States validated the ACQF Policy Document in 2023, they endorsed an overarching continental qualifications framework comprising ten reference levels. Rather than replacing national qualifications frameworks, the ACQF serves as a common reference point, a translation mechanism that enables qualifications issued in different countries to be understood, compared and trusted across Africa.
Every qualification tells a story more than just what someone studied. They tell a story about the knowledge, competencies, skills and standards they have achieved. When qualifications are transparent and trusted, they become the currency that enables labour mobility, supports investment in human capital and strengthens regional competitiveness.
This reinforces the idea of mutual trust in qualifications, because without it, labour mobility remains constrained. Employers hesitate to recruit across borders. Professionals face unnecessary barriers to practice. Students encounter obstacles in pursuing further education abroad. Industries struggle to access specialised talent where it is most needed.
Conversely, trusted qualifications unlock opportunity. An engineer trained in Nairobi, a renewable energy technician certified in Lusaka, a nurse educated in Kigali or a software developer qualified in Pretoria should be able to demonstrate competencies that are recognised throughout the continent. The ACQF is helping make this aspiration a practical reality.
This is especially significant as Africa advances the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area. While tariffs and customs procedures are important, the success of continental integration ultimately depends on whether skilled Africans can move, work and contribute wherever opportunities arise. Labour mobility without qualifications mobility is a self-defeatist approach to continental growth.
At the same time, it is hard to ignore the fact that the future of work is changing at an unprecedented pace. Artificial intelligence, automation, climate change and the transition to green economies are reshaping occupations faster than traditional education systems can respond. Increasingly, valuable competencies are acquired not only through formal education but also through workplace experience, apprenticeships, online learning and short, industry-focused programmes. Qualifications systems must therefore evolve alongside these labour demands.
Recognising this reality, the forum places considerable emphasis on emerging policy areas including micro-credentials, Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), green skills, digital credentials and common multi-country occupational profiles. These initiatives acknowledge that learning is lifelong and that valuable competencies can be acquired through diverse pathways. Africa is building qualification systems that are more inclusive, more flexible, widely recognised and better aligned with the realities of modern work.
Kenya's role in this continental transformation reflects more than our responsibility as host nation.
Over the past decade, the Kenya National Qualifications Authority (KNQA) has worked to strengthen the Kenya National Qualifications Framework (KNQF) by promoting lifelong learning. Through initiatives such as the National Qualifications Database, the Kenya Credit Accumulation and Transfer System (KCATS), Recognition of Prior Learning, and digital qualifications services, Kenya continues to build an ecosystem that enables qualifications to respond effectively to the needs of learners, employers and the wider economy.
Hosting the 7th ACQF Continental Forum also demonstrates Kenya's commitment to strengthening continental institutions. As part of the forum, discussions on establishing sustainable governance, financing and legal arrangements for the ACQF Network all emphasize an important principle that transformative frameworks must outlive projects, and strong institutions must outlive individual dispensations. Long-term cooperation requires permanent structures capable of supporting continuous policy dialogue, technical collaboration and peer learning across Africa.
Agenda 2063 envisions "The Africa We Want", an integrated, prosperous and peaceful continent driven by its own citizens. Achieving that vision demands investment in Africa's greatest asset: its people. When qualifications become transparent and portable, education becomes opportunity. Opportunity becomes mobility. Mobility becomes productivity. And productivity becomes shared continental prosperity.
The 7th ACQF Continental Forum is therefore a declaration that Africa is building the foundations of a knowledge-driven economy where talent is recognised regardless of where it is acquired, where lifelong learning is valued, and where qualifications become passports to opportunity rather than barriers to progress.
Dr Kande, PhD, Director General/CEO, Kenya National Qualifications Authority (KNQA)
