on the Sum Up of Quarterly Achievements
By Por Malis
On May 22nd, 2014 Mrs. Por Malis, Vice President of Operations, attended the quarterly meeting of the Cambodian Higher Education Association (CHEA). The meeting was presided over by H.E. In Virakcheat, Chairman of the CHEA Board of Directors and H.E. Ly Chheng, President of CHEA. Vice President of CHEA, H.E. Doung Leang, started the meeting by reviewing CHEA’s achievements in the 1st quarter of 2014 before H.E. Ly Chheng took over, to discuss current projects and make announcements.
H.E. Ly Chheng informed the meeting that earlier in the month of May, CHEA attended a retreat for Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in association with MoEYS and Asia Development Bank (ADB). The purpose of this retreat was to create a road map for HEI reform from 2014-2030.
The meeting then discussed the issue of tax holidays, although many universities have already opened accounts with the Tax Department, some have not. The meeting’s consensus was to have CHEA request an extension of the tax holiday; so those universities, who have not yet switched over, can meet with the Tax Department to officially negotiate before submitting for approval to the Prime Minister.
Due to current inconsistencies between universities in Cambodia, the issue of non-degree certificates and who will create, issue and sign them was brought up. They concluded that universities should continue to issue non-degree certificates by themselves, or request to have them co-signed by MoEYS. It was decided that there was no need to change the current system, since it has not been problematic
thus far. It was also noted that on official degrees, at least 2 people should sign the diplomas and that those persons should be; the university President, the Registrar and the Chairman or Chancellor of the university.
Also discussed were the current reforms being implemented by MoEYS; including new fees for HEIs and schools, and MoEYS verbal plan to begin issuing 5 year renewable licenses for HEIs. CHEA requested that, before the next quarterly meeting, all CHEA members do research on how other ASEAN nations deal with opening new universities. Specifically whether or not they are required to deposit money prior to opening and what limitations are placed on the licenses issued to HEIs. H.E. Ly Chheng made a special request to the University of Cambodia’s President, H.E. Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, for additional advice on other ASEAN nation’s university operations, since he is very involved with ASEAN. The 2nd quarterly meeting of CHEA will focus on these reforms, and members are expected to bring in research to fuel the discussion.
H.E. In Virakcheat explained why it is important that universities not lower tuition fees in an attempt to raise enrollment. The reason for this is to maintain a high level of quality in the institution. As inflation increases, so should tuition and staff salaries. If all HEIs are able to do this, staff retention will increase and students will continue to receive a quality education.
