On 16 July 2021 HERAS Plus team leader Mr. Aqim Emurli met with Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) Minister Arberie Nagavci, to discuss the ongoing implementation of the project and the overall support that the project provides towards three level of intervention: policy level, university level and research level. The Minister was informed that the project supports Kosovo to ensure more competitive and diversified public higher education and research sector in Kosovo in line with the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), European Research Area (ERA).

Ms. Nagavci also outlined the priorities of the MESTI in the coming period and was happy to hear the project HERAS Plus fits very well into it, in particular issues related to institutional and policy support, higher education reforms, quality assurance processes, research promotion and innovation matters.

The Minister agreed with Mr. Emurli to have regular meetings in order the alignment of the project intervention, project results and the sustainability of its actions is ensured systematically

A few weeks after launching the Current Research Information System (CRIS) Roadmap, the Software Requirements or Technical Specifications were finalized during the respective Working Group Meeting which took place on 13 July 2021.

Hosted by Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI) and supported by HERAS Plus, members of the Working Group, composed of relevant stakeholders, endorsed the documents presented and gave their contribution with comments and suggestions that defined specific features of each module, including indicators that will enable the generation of reports for processes related to MESTI, Kosovo Accreditation Agency, Kosovo Agency of Statistics and Smart Specialization Strategy.

The system is in line with the current regulatory framework, designed to be user-friendly, enable interfaces with existing systems, and serve as a statistical and report generator on several indicators for all relevant stakeholders and the general public (as open data). After the finalization and approval of the Terms of Reference, the ResearchCult and HERAS Plus will launch a procurement notice to select the best bidder in accordance with the criteria’s that will be integrated part of the tender package. The CRIS development will follow open and transparent procedures, while the functionalization of the system will be established through the respective Administrative Instruction – to be developed in line with the development of the system.

CRIS is being developed by HERAS Plus and ResearchCult.

HERAS Plus and the University of Prishtina (UP) hold the kickoff meeting to discuss and approve the methodology for developing the “Roadmap on advising the senior management on how to launch and implement a Performance management instrument for the academic staff”. Mr. Aqim Emurli, HERAS+ Team Leader, after highlighting the readiness of the Project to support the University of Prishtina in the field of strategic and institutional development invited the UP leadership to work together in reviewing the proposed Methodology for this developmental intervention. Mr. Emurli noted that having a sound methodology is a determining factor to having a successful activity, and consequently to achieving an output that will be useful to UP leadership in their efforts to both improve the overall performance and improve services offered by the University.

Rector of UP, Prof. Dr. Naser Sahiti, commended the close cooperation between UP and the HERAS+ Project, and thanked the Project Team for their invaluable contribution. Further, Rector, Mr. Sahiti, presented his vision, and the vision of UP leadership, regarding the initiative to develop an annual system of evaluating the performance of academic staff, including the basic instrument called “The Performance Card”. The Rector, Mr. Sahiti, highlighted the fact that UP leadership is interested to apply an inclusive and consultative approach in the process of developing the Roadmap document. In this regard the Rector, Mr. Sahiti, recommended that the input and contribution of deans, academic staff, students and alumni is also taken into consideration.

Ms. Kristiina Tõnnisson, HERAS+ international expert, presented the proposed Methodology for delivering on this Activity and interacted with the Rector, Mr. Sahiti, and with other member of the UP team, as well as with the HERAS+ Team, in the process of receiving feedback for the proposed Methodology.

HERAS Plus and ResearchCult Projects join forces for establishing the first Research Information System in Kosovo by signing a Memorandum of Understanding.

This cooperation aims to design, develop, and functionalize the Current Information Research System (CRIS – as initially named by HERAS Plus) or Kosovo Research Information System (KRIS – as initially named by ResearchCult) in a mutual endeavor of support, provided by the two projects in close collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation of the Republic of Kosovo.

Mr. Harri Tuomola, Executive Director of International Business College Mitrovica (IBC-M), welcomed the HERAS Plus team in the MoU signing ceremony and opened the event by thanking HERAS Plus for its role in enhancing higher education, research and innovation and the willingness for cooperation. He addressed participants with acknowledgments of the joint endeavor for contributing towards building a research information system that is going to, first and foremost, contribute to the enhancement of the research quality outputs and research collaborations.

On the other hand, Mr. Aqim Emurli, HERAS Plus Project Team Leader, stressed that HERAS Plus, as a project funded by Austrian Development Agency (ADA) dedicated to improve the higher education and research landscape in Kosovo with activities ranging from intervention in Policy making processes to building capacities and supporting Universities. He emphasized the importance of this MoU in avoiding possible overlaps of projects by creating synergies which will be translated into this specific activity through add-ed value features, functions, and regulation of the research system. This is clear contribution for the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation of the Republic of Kosovo and all relevant stakeholders related to research, science and innovation in higher education sector.

The process of development of CRIS/KRIS, conceptually defined in the draft-roadmap prepared by HERAS Plus International Expert, will soon be presented for discussion in a Workshop in front of the main stakeholders and other relevant partners to receive and address comments, suggestions, and inputs, at this developmental stage of the activity.

On 31 March 2021, HERAS Plus Project conducted the Selection Board meeting to review the application for PhD and Post-Doc scholarships. In this process the Project awarded scholarships to nine PhD and Post-Doc researchers from Kosovo to pursue their studies at Austrian universities.

The scholarship Selection Board, consisting of representatives from Austrian Development Agency (ADA), Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI), World University Service (WUS) Austria and Austrian Agency for International Mobility and Cooperation in Education, Science and Research (OeAD), convened to conduct a final review of individual applications. The Selection Board review is, in fact, the last-instance review conducted by the Project after assessing the eligibility and undergoing expert review in an earlier stage. The award decisions were made based on the clearly set criteria declared on the Guidelines for the Scholarship Fund that were announced together with the scholarship call.

The objective of the HERAS Plus PhD and Post-Doc scholarship program is to provide a platform for the future PhD graduates and Post-Doc researches to 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 abroad. Furthermore, the scholarship Selection Board recommended the Project Team to launch another call for application, which is planned for late 2021.