On 27^th of May, 2021, The Selection Board Meeting consisting of representatives from the Austrian Development Agency, Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation, WUS Austria and OEAD concluded the final evaluation and reached consensus decisions, based on the initial eligibility check results and the Independent peer-reviews from external experts. The evaluation from peer-reviewers and selection decisions by the Selection Board Members were fully based on the respective set of criteria from the General and Financial Guidelines of Programmatic Partnership Call.

In addition to the overall evaluation, project proposals were also assessed on if and how they contribute to the Kosovo National Priorities and the implementation of the strategic documents with a focus on Higher Education such as the Kosovo Education Strategic Plan (KESP), the National Development Strategy (NDS), Standards and guidelines for quality assurance (ESGs) and the Kosovo Economic Reform Plan (ERP).

The Programmatic Partnership Projects are expected to contribute towards Capacity development and internationalisation in higher education, research and management through partnerships between institutions from Kosovo and Austria.

On 25 May 2021 took place launching of the first centralized system of systematic data collection of research activities, developed using Austrian and Croatian best practices and European Frameworks for data collection. This system will benefit many stakeholders such as Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation – MESTI (having the ownership), Universities, Research Entities. The Current Research Information System (CRIS/KRIS) roadmap was presented and good practices, models were discussed, as well as current challenges of research excellence faced by Universities and relevant stakeholders.

The event was officially addressed by Deputy Minister Mr. Dukagjin Pupovci, the Deputy Head of Cooperation of European Union (EU) in Kosovo, Ms. Hillen Francke, and Ms. Sandra Horina, Head of Austrian Development Agency (ADA), Local Office Prishtina as well as Mr. Aqim Emurli, HERAS Plus Team Leader.

Deputy Minister stated that improvement of research conditions is a priority of MESTI thus CRIS/KRIS is extremely important because will offer us data and information that could be used for various purposes and due to this reason, a Working Group was establish by MESTI to support the development and functionalization of CRIS/KRIS. CRIS/KRIS is related to other important processes such as Horizon Europe, development of the Smart Specialization Strategy and Drafting of the National Science Program by the National Science Council.

Related to the synergies of CRIS/KRIS with other priorities and processes, Ms. Francke of the EU Office in Kosovo, stressed that Scientific research is a very important component of EU activity in Kosovo and CRIS will play a crucial role in collection, monitoring and evaluation of research activities towards research excellence and the ability to absorb EU funds from programs such as Horizon Europe.

Ms. Sandra Horina, Head of ADA in Prishtina, stated that this important system for the activities and processes of scientific research comes as result of consistent contribution from the Austrian Donor, throughout the years, through previous projects (such as HERAS) in which human and infrastructure capacities for research were assessed and conclusions driven towards building up the reasoning for the development of CRIS/KRIS. This shows the consistency and suitability of project interventions from the Austrian donor.

In a concluding remark, Mr. Aqim Emurli, the team leader stressed that the roadmap is quite a milestone for HERAS Plus to have developed such a deliverable – the work has started in November 2020 which has included interviews, questionnaires, focus groups, several feedbacks from all sides. He further encouraged all stakeholders to work together and implement the options that are promulgated in it.

On March 5, 2021 and HERAS Plus, and University of Prishtina (UP) officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

Through the MoU, HERAS Plus Project is committed to working with UP for institutional and technical support for strengthening capacities for further institutional development, including advancing strategic planning, promoting research and innovation, quality assurance enhancement, international cooperation, student and staff exchange in line with 3^rd mission of universities.

Rector of the University of Prishtina, Prof. Dr. Naser Sahiti, on this occasion thanked the HERAS Plus project, project donors, such as the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) and the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kosovo, as well as other partners within the Austrian consortium implementing the HERAS Plus project, important in supporting public universities, but also the higher education sector in general.

Ms. Horina expressed satisfaction that she is witnessing a success story where it is clear that the management of the University of Prishtina and the team of the HERAS Plus project have carefully identified the possibilities of cooperation and have included them in this Memorandum of Understanding.

HERAS Plus team leader, Mr. Aqim Emurli stated that through the signing of this Memorandum the University of Prishtina will benefit from expertise and exchange the best Austrian practices in areas related to the overall development and empowerment of the University. The MoU formalizes the excellent cooperation that already exists between the HERAS Plus project and the University of Prishtina.

The MoU and the cooperation with UP will be contributing to a more diverse higher education landscape in line with EHEA and ERA and SDG 4 and 9. The joint activities will be developed and presented throughout the period 2020 – 2023. .

On 4 March 2021, at the event, HERAS Plus presented the roadmap that describes Austrian and other countries’ practices regarding the regulatory aspects of the applied sciences approaches.

The roadmap paves the road towards developing a new Administrative Instruction and in the long-run new/revised accreditation standard. Only then the systematic reform will be complete in this field. More work is needed until then from the project HERAS Plus and all involved stakeholders, i.e., MES, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), Accreditation Agency.

Though, excellent endorsement of the event proceedings by the Mr. Rame Likaj, Minister, Ms. Sandra Horina, Head of Office, Austrian Development Cooperation, Mr. Aqim Emurli, Team Leader, the representatives of the public HEIs, representatives of ADA funded projects (ALLED2 & QAINT) and HERAS Plus expert Mr. Kushtrim Bajrami.

 

On 18 February 2021, HERAS Plus in close cooperation with Ministry of Education and Science (MES) continues its support towards an improved structural integration of Kosovo in Horizon Europe through an adjusted National Contact Points (NCP) system, a deliberate decision on the association of Kosovo to Horizon Europe and access facilitation of Kosovan researchers to European R&I programs.

The project was honoured with the presence of colleagues from Austrian Development Agency (ADA), Ms. Sandra Horina and Ms. Albulena Zaimi as well as the Deputy Minister of Education and Science Mr. Xhavit Rexhaj.

Ms. Sandra Horina, expressed the appreciation of ADA for the excellent cooperation of MES with HERAS Plus. She stressed that the event is happening in a crucial timeline for developments concerning Horizon Europe schemes, programs, and calls and that HERAS Plus will continue its support for the upcoming processes to ensure that the NCP system is adjusted and well-trained to deliver to the expected roles in disseminating information and supporting identified initiatives through the established mechanisms in NCP. 

Mr. Xhavit Rexhaj addressed participants with the MES priorities in research & development and MES plans regarding future Horizon Europe endeavours and current progress in this regard.

From different perspectives, the event was used to i) highlight the Austrian/ADA support for the sector of Higher Education and Research in Kosovo along the principles of the European Higher Education Area, ii) to present the priorities of the MES in the field of research & development and plans of MES in regard to future Horizon Europe endeavours and last but not the least, iii) to present the input paper related to Horizon Europe Program and the integration of towards the Kosovo to Horizon Europe.

Mr. Gorazd Weiss from our Consortium member ZSI delivered a detailed presentation on the Horizon Europe Program, structure and related procedures, and the implications for the NCP of the expected new Program as well as the process and benefits from potential Association of Kosovo to Horizon Europe.

The Team Leader, Mr. Aqim Emurli stated that the HERAS Plus project ultimately contributes to the well-functioning of Higher Education and Research in Kosovo with the long-term objective to support the socio-economic development of the country and to this end, support for the Kosovo’s association to Horizon Europe is crucial.

.

On 21 December 2020, the online information session on Programmatic Partnerships was held to disseminate information on the objectives, outlines, expected results, methodology, eligibility criteria, selection procedure and other necessary information pertaining to the HERAS Plus call on Programmatic Partnerships.

The online information session contained a presentation by Ms. Louise Sperl, Project Manager and International Expert from the lead consortium partner, WUS Austria, with opening remarks and moderation by Ms. Fitore Fazliu, Thematic Coordinator for Research and Innovation at HERAS Plus. The presentation and discussions touched upon (but not limited to) possible areas of cooperation, focus areas and eligibility.

Programmatic Partnerships aim to build and develop cooperation between Kosovar and Austrian Institutions of Higher Education and the Accreditation Agencies in Higher Education. Thus, the eligible entities are: Public Higher Education Institutions and Accreditation Agencies and National Qualification Framework Agencies from Kosovo and Austria.

These programmatic partnerships might encompass possible areas of cooperation such as:

• Curriculum development
• Enhancing of research conditions and capacities on institutional level
• Issues related to the Bologna Process (including also aspects related to the Social Dimension)
• Strengthening HRBA, the Social dimension of higher education and gender equality in curricula, teaching and research
• Linking Higher Education and economy issues related to the employability of graduates
• Quality assurance in higher education
• Workshops on specific topics for students and staff
• Handling of examinations and staff exchange
• Other topics in line with basic principles of the partnership idea

Focus areas of PP are: Fostering of 1)  labor market relevance, 2) the Social Dimension of HE and 3) the implementation of a Human Rights Based Approach (HRBA) in HE and 4) the implementation of the European Standard Guidelines for quality assurance (ESG).

The open call can be accessed here: PROGRAMMATIC PARTNERSHIP

On 18 December 2020, ‘HERAS Plus’ Project organized an Online Information Session on the Scholarship Fund, or, as it is referred in the Project, the PhD and Post-Doc Fellowships Program. The Fellowship Program aims at contributing to Kosovo academic community, and institutions, by developing researchers graduated from Austrian Universities.

A comprehensive presentation of the Program was delivered by Ms. Silvia Riegler, Program Officer at the Austrian Agency for International Cooperation in Education and Research (OeAD). The presentation offered an overall overview of the scholarships, including the target group, the eligibility criteria, the timetable and the application and selection procedure. It was also presented that the objective of the call is that PhD students and post-doc researchers will contribute to the institutional capacity development of their home institutions in Kosovo by completing their PhD studies and the post-doc research at an university in Austria.

The session proved very informative and interactive. Up to 38 participants joint the online session, many of whom contributed with questions, comments, and discussion. The Session was moderated by Mr. Nehat Dervishi, Thematic Coordinator for Higher Education within ‘HERAS Plus’ Project. The Project Team continues to receive and address questions from candidates interested in applying for the Program. .

On 09 December 2020, ‘HERAS Plus’ Project organized a Working Group (WG) meeting on Applied Science (AS) policies. The WG meeting was organized in close cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science (MES). Minister of MES, Mr. Ramë Likaj, attended the event and offered his vision and guidance on AS Policy development. In addition, Minister Likaj encouraged the WG members to proceed with drafting a policy on AS referring to, and benefiting from, the Austrian experience through utilizing the support of ‘HERAS Plus’ Project.

The Project’s international lead expert on Applied Science, Mr. Almir Kovacevic, addressed the audience via an online link. Mr. Kovacevic provided an overview of AS best-practices in Austria including a guide of AS policy drafting process. The Team Leader of the project, Mr. Aqim Emurli proposed a methodology and a practical approach of engagement in addressing the issue of AS policy regulation. Further, Mr. Emurli, noted that ‘HERAS Plus’ will provide overall support to the WG in the process of drafting the regulatory framework in the field of AS.

The WG members (representing public HEIs) discussed extensively on the necessity to better regulate the field of AS in Kosovo. They brought forward their views and stands on how the future AS field should look like. The WG members agreed that the AS shall be regulated in a systematic manner and through a multilevel intervention.

The WG members, during their discussion, noted that Kosovo should first invest in having a sound policy that shall regulate the AS field as whole. Secondly, the WG addressed the need to adjust the accreditation standards for the AS that are offered by the Higher Education system in Kosovo. Lastly, the WG suggested to focus on designing and implementing a proper organizational set-up of the public HEIs in Kosovo to enable them to successfully implement the AS policy.

As a next step, the Project ‘HERAS Plus’ together with WG Members will engage in developing a Roadmap document on AS. The Roadmap document will include policy options that will be presented to MES for consideration and endorsement.

HERAS Plus Project reached an activity milestone through expert support for the Kosovo Accreditation Agency (KAA) for the development of the ‘Handbook for induction of the International Evaluation Experts’.

At 8 December online coordination meeting, the KAA and HERAS Plus officials, supported by the national expert discussed and approved the methodology under which the Handbook will be developed.

The methodology is tailored to meet the needs of KAA in training the incoming experts in the induction phase and it also aligns with the ENQA’s recommendations (as identified in the first progress report phase) and as such, it includes a brief overview of Kosovo, it’s demography and Higher Education Institutions that is further contextualized by an assessment  of the gaps and needs of respective institutions and it lays out the relevant procedures of institutional and program accreditation that incoming experts at the KAA for accreditation processes gain the necessary knowledge and insights into the context and relevant procedures, to allow for objectivity and quality assurance during the accreditation process.

Noteworthy, this activity is the first of many others which will follow, since signing of the MoU between the KAA and HERAS Plus to support the last in capacity building and expert support.

On 25 November 2020, HERAS Plus Project donors organized an event marking the official Kickoff of the Project. The launching event took place in the online platforms. The event attracted interest and attendance of over 75 participants representing all the Project stakeholders, including the Project donor institutions, the Project implementing organizations, representatives of public Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), experts and academicians as well as members of the Media.

HERAS Plus is jointly funded by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) and the Ministry of Education and Science (MES). On behalf of MES, Minister Ramë Likaj thanked the Austrian taxpayers, the Austrian donor (ADA) and the Austrian implementing organizations (WUS AT, ZSI, OeAD) for their valuable contribution in the development of education in Kosovo. The Minister, expressed his admiration for the Austrian best practices in the field of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Applied Sciences and noted that HERAS Plus Project, is an ideal platform through which the necessary developmental interventions can be made in Kosovo.

The Austrian Ambassador to Kosovo, His Excellency Mr. Christoph Weidinger, addressed the Project kickoff event. The Ambassador emphasized that Austrian donors are committed to support Kosovo in undertaking the necessary reforms to make the Higher Education system in Kosovo harmonized with the European standards. HERAS Plus Project, noted the Ambassador, is “a demonstration of our commitment to the support the efforts of Kosovo in establishing modern, competitive, transparent, and well-functioning education system that is line with the standards and principles of the EU.”

HERAS Plus Project Team Leader in Kosovo, Mr. Aqim Emurli, offered an overall presentation of the Project. The Team Leader, Mr. Emurli, briefly presented the Project background, Project outcomes, outputs, and indicators, as well the Project methodology and the intervention logic. Mr. Emurli, reiterated that the ‘HERAS Plus’ is built on the lesson-learned from the previous HERAS project and that the Project Team has developed all the necessary tools for a successful implementation of the Project. The Team Leader thanked the Project stakeholders and beneficiaries for their systematic cooperation.

The representatives of the three implementing organizations, the Consortium of WUS Austria, ZSI and OeAD addressed the Kickoff Event. Ms. Veronika Nitsche addressed the event on behalf of WUS Austria, which is also the Consortium Lead. Mr. Gorazd Weiss addressed the event on behalf of Centre for Social Innovation (ZSI), whereas Mr. Ulrich Hoermann spoke on behalf of the Austrian Agency for International Cooperation in Education and Research (OeAD). The Consortium members presented their organizations, and the role that each organization plays in the context of HERAS Plus Project implementation. In addition, the Consortium members, during their presentations, launched the Project Calls for Application for programs within their portfolio, including: Programmatic Partnerships (managed by WUS AT), Research Grants (managed by ZSI), and PhD and PostDoc Fellowships (managed by OeAD).

The event was co-moderated by Ms. Diellza Kukaj, Minister’s Political Advisor, and Mr. Aqim Emurli, Team Leader in HERAS Plus. The event generated a lot of interest from participants and resulted in some very insightful comments and interaction. The event was widely reported on the local media, where it was assessed to be a success story.