We are delighted to say that we anticipate a continuation of CAEP in mid-2020, the format and content of which will be decided following a review of stakeholder needs. The new project will be based on the revised EU-Central Asia strategy to be adopted later this year.

Although there will be no CAEP activities over the coming year, the website will be accessible until at least the end of 2019, and is a valuable source of information on education reform and cooperation in the region. As well as background papers on CAEP priorities, you will also find new ‘Central Asia HE and VET Briefs’ covering current education policy in the Central Asia countries, and a database of 185 donor projects.

You can also see an overview of the CAEP project to-date in the CAEP video – with footage of some of our events and testimonials from a selection of partners and stakeholders:

The purpose of the final Regional Conference was to review the outcomes of CAEP II to date and discuss future perspectives for cooperation in Higher Education (HE) and Vocational Education & Training (VET) between the European Union, Member States and Central Asian countries.  Attending the event were representatives from the Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development (DG DEVCO), the European External Action Service (EEAS), the CAEP Team, project partners Erasmus+ and the European Training Foundation (ETF), and delegates from the five Central Asian Ministries of Education and the EU Member States Latvia and Romania.

At the conference, Mr. Christian Wagner, CAEP Team Leader, presented an overview of the outcomes of the CAEP project from 2012-2019. An important part of EU support to education in the region, along with Erasmus+ and CAREN, the project has changed considerably since its inception in 2012, with a more visible approach achieved through the strengthened commitment of the Central Asia countries and more active member state involvement.

The achievements of CAEP II (2015-2019) can be divided into three areas:

Improved Policy Dialogue
Two Ministerial Meetings (Riga 2015 and Astana 2017) resulted in a Joint Communique and Roadmap of activities and subsequently the Astana Declaration. Dialogue fora and meetings have promoted regular exchange on the modernisation of education systems in Central Asia and facilitated regional cooperation. Cooperation has also been established with other donors such as the World Bank and UNESCO.

Sector modernisation
CAEP activities in conjunction with other EU programmes, such as Erasmus+ and ETF, have contributed to:

• The launch of a joint cross sub-sector discussion of VET and HE on an integrative qualification system
• Raising awareness on policy learning and development in the area of evidence based policy making
• Identifying potential for bilateral cooperation between EU member state and CA as well as among CA countries
• Promoting the benefits of Bologna principles and the learning outcomes approach when establishing National Qualification Frameworks (NQF)
• Recommendations for strengthening quality assurance and accreditation (QAA)
• The active involvement of the business community
• New and strengthened contacts between EU and CA institutions.

Improved knowledge and mutual understanding
The active involvement of lead EU Member States Poland and Latvia has seen experience and best practice shared, both at policy and institutional level. The use of peer learning methodology and working groups has favoured people-to-people exchange and enhanced mutual understanding in the modernisation process in the education sectors of both the EU and Central Asia.

Including the one year extension from 2018-2019, CAEP II has implemented the following activities to address challenges in both HE and VET:

• 9 National Meetings
• 7 Regional Meetings
• 5 Peer Learning Meetings
• 5 Working Group Meetings
• 7 Webinars
• 5 Senior Officials’ Meetings (SOM)
• 2 Ministerial Meetings (MIN)

A total of 8 background and review reports have been produced by CAEP experts on topics such as National Qualification Frameworks, Capacity Building and Mobility programmes, Social Inclusion and Gender Equality and the Financing of Education Systems.

Finally, in terms of communication and mapping, a database has been produced with a total of 185 donor projects in the region, a bilingual website has been updated with news and details of events, and 15 editions of the CAEP newsletter have been produced.

The external evaluation team found clear evidence that CAEP II has contributed to national education reform, and the improvement of international and regional cooperation. An important factor has been the demand driven nature of CAEP; the team and participants established stakeholder needs and these have been reflected in the flexible and evolving format. Success factors highlighted were the sustained commitment and contribution of Central Asian and European stakeholders, synergies with ETF, DG EAC and EACEA, and the performance of the CAEP Team.

In our latest newsletter you can find a full report on the event, including Central Asia delegates sharing recent developments in education reform in their countries, a review of the use of peer learning and evidence based policy making in CAEP events, and an outlook on the foreseen continuation of the project.

You can also find the agenda, downloadable presentations and a photo gallery from the conference on the events page.

The aim of the project, which was launched in 2015 by a consortium of institutions from Uzbekistan and the EU, has been to develop a national qualification framework for Uzbekistan (NQF RUz).

It is foreseen that the development and implementation of the NQF will allow for:

• The evaluation of a specialist by his/her qualifications, learning outcomes and gained competence

• A significant expansion of employment opportunities in foreign countries and organisations

• The ranking of educational institutions by the level of demand

Following analysis of the existing education system, structure and documentation 8 levels (+2 sublevels) of qualifications were identified, making up the draft NQF RUz, which was then comparatively assessed against the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). Dublin descriptors for graduates of Bachelor and Master programme were also developed, which will be an integral part of the sectoral qualification frameworks.

A pilot model of credit system (similar to ECTS) was introduced to the Tashkent University of Information Technologies in the academic year 2018-2019 on an experimental basis. The proposed model of the NQF will now be presented for discussion at the final Conference of the NURSLING Project in April, as the first stage of the 10-step NQF formation process.

For further information, please see:

The purpose of this Regional Conference is to review the outcomes of the CAEP project to date and discuss future perspectives for cooperation in Higher Education (HE) and Vocational Education & Training (VET) between the European Union, Member States and Central Asian countries at regional level.

Participants from the Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development (DG DEVCO), the CAEP Team and project partners Erasmus+ and the European Training Foundation (ETF) will address the overall achievements of cooperation between the EU and Central Asia in supporting policy dialogue and education reform in HE and VET in the region, and then look specifically at the outcomes of the CAEP project. Since 2015, over 30 events have been organised under the umbrella of CAEP Phase II, including Ministerial Meetings, Regional Conferences, National Seminars, Peer Learning and Working Group meetings and online webinars. The platform has seen active involvement from all five Central Asian countries and valuable contributions from its project partners and education experts from lead Member States Poland and Latvia.

At the conference, representatives from the Central Asian Ministries of Education will be invited to share recent developments on education reform in their country, taking into account the priority fields of action identified in the Astana Declaration, agreed at the CAEP Second Meeting for Ministers of Education in 2017. These priority fields include National Qualifications Frameworks (NQF), Quality Assurance and Accreditation (QAA), employment and labour market needs and the contribution of education to prevent violent radicalisation of youth and address gender inequalities. Participants from EU Member States will also put forward their experiences of contributing to policy dialogue and supporting education reform in the region and the use of peer learning methodology and evidence-based policy making within the CAEP framework will be presented and discussed. To close, in a round table session, participants will consider the outlook on future cooperation in education between the EU, the EU Member States and Central Asia countries at both bilateral and regional level.

The agenda, downloadable presentations and photo gallery from the event can be found on the event page.

This three-day event was the fifth and final in a series of working group meetings looking at data collection methodologies and evidence based policy making in HE and VET – aimed at demonstrating the benefits of using hard facts and empirical evidence in the decision making process, to help policy makers make well-informed decisions and provide a solid basis for tailoring educational content to the real needs of both students and the labour market.

The meeting was organised by CAEP in collaboration with the European Training Foundation (ETF), who brought to the table their experiences of the Torino Process project, and was supported by the Ministry of Education and Science for the Kyrgyz Republic.

The aims of this working group have been to:

• Reinforce monitoring functions in CA countries through improving the knowledge and skills of participants
• Share experiences and lessons across countries and with the EU on the evidence based policy making approach
• Create a network in the region which will continue to exchange practices and evidence in the area of VET/Higher education and skills development.

The first three meetings of the working group looked at the different phases of the evidence cycle:

1. The first meeting, held in Istanbul in February 2017, introduced the concept of evidence-based policy making and evaluating the evidence cycle;
2. The second meeting examined monitoring approaches and tools for generating evidence and data;
3. The third meeting, in Torino in October 2017, was dedicated to the analysis of the evidence and data and how to communicate the findings and recommendations.

The final two meetings focused on the transition of graduates to the labour market, with the fourth meeting in Almaty covering the topic of career guidance, and this, fifth, meeting looking specifically at the use of graduate tracer studies to collect data on the transition and using that evidence for policy analysis and development.

To prepare for this meeting, delegates met the previous week for a web-based seminar, in which the ETF team presented an introduction to tracer studies and the concepts behind evidence based policy making and participants had the chance to put forward issues they wanted raised in Bishkek.

On the first day of the meeting, each of the Central Asia country teams presented what they already knew about HE and VET graduates in their country and discussed the importance of tracing what happens in the transition process to the labour market. Ms. Diana Laipniece, an education expert from Latvia, shared the Latvian experience of using tracer studies for VET graduates and Mr Marek Bozykowski, an education researcher and specialist from the University of Warsaw, gave a presentation on the Polish Graduate Tracking System, probably one of the most advanced systems active in the EU. At the end of the day, the country teams started to outline the case study that they would work on for the next two days – to develop a strategy for undertaking and analysing tracer studies in their own country.

The second and third days saw practical sessions looking at different approaches to surveying and measuring graduate transition, as well as group sessions in which the country teams continued to work and present aspects of their case study.

In conclusion, final country case study presentations were then followed by reflections by each team on the key learnings they wished to take home with them and implement in their ongoing activities. It was found that although each country faced some different issues, across the region there were many similar challenges, such as lack of data on graduates, no centralised mechanisms for the collection and storage of information, human and financial resource issues and political support. The importance of regional cooperation was also noted, due to the movement of migrants between the countries, and the example of the European Schengen Area was discussed.

Ms. Liia Kaarlop from ETF said that her main takeaway from the working group was “the positive attitude of colleagues from all 4 countries to learn about evidence-based policy making, monitoring of graduates and tracer studies” and found the “motivation of participants” and the “value of team-work” impressive. ETF’s experience of evidence based policy making has complimented the work of the platform in this area and their joint knowledge and expertise has helped the working group participants learn from each other.

The agenda, downloadable presentations and photo gallery from the event can be found on the event page.

The role of education in preventing and countering violent extremism was identified as a priority for EU cooperation in Central Asia at the Second Meeting for Ministers of Education (MIN) in Astana in 2017, in line with the global commitment to Sustainable Development Goals, in particular to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” (SDG 4), and this seminar was organised to contribute to regional policy dialogue on the topic.

Representatives from the MSSHE, the EU Delegation and the Polish and Latvian Embassies joined delegates from Central Asian HE and VET institutions, community and youth associations, as well as, for the first time at a CAEP event, representatives from UNESCO, OSCE and UNICEF – demonstrating the interest in and relevance of CAEP to policy dialogue on education in the region.

The event was opened by the Deputy Minister for Higher and Specialised Secondary Education of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Mr. Uzokboy Begimqulov, the Delegation of the EU to Uzbekistan’s Head of Cooperation, François Begeot, and Latvian and Polish Ambassadors, H.E. Mihails Popkovs and H.E. Piotr Iwaszkiewicz. Both the Latvian and Polish ambassadors emphasised the importance of the outcomes achieved by CAEP so far, as well as their ongoing support for the implementation of project activities.

During the morning sessions, representatives from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), UNESCO and the Mahalla Foundation in Uzbekistan shared their approaches to strengthening social inclusion, including Global Citizenship Education, the strengthening of transversal skills and specific teacher training (UNESCO), and the self-governing Mahalla Institution reaching out to families, religious groups and youth.

Mr. Jan Helbich, CAEP Education Expert, also presented a summary of the findings of the recent CAEP review report on the role of education in supporting social inclusion and resilience against radicalisation among youth. He explained the basic concepts of ‘quality education’, ‘social inclusion’ and ‘transition into the labour market’ and discussed how they address the ‘push’ and pull’ drivers of violent extremism. This led to an overview of existing policies and frameworks that promote social inclusion, with some examples of promising initiatives aimed at fostering social inclusion in and through education, and he concluded with a list of recommendations based on the Abu Dhabi Memorandum on Good Practices on Education and Countering Violent Extremism (2015) and Abu Dhabi Plan of Action for Education and Countering Violent Extremism (2016). The full report can be downloaded here (in English, with a summary of findings in Russian).

The afternoon saw parallel workshops tackle the role of non-formal education and community-based approaches, as well how to ensure equitable access, success and quality in both HE and VET. Case studies and examples of good practice were presented by representatives from the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and the EU member states of Poland, Latvia and Romania.

The day concluded with a final discussion and presentation of preliminary recommendations. Participants came to the conclusion that although progress has been made to better address the needs of marginalised groups in education, work is still needed to strengthen the capacity of education systems to reach out to all learners, in particular for those leaving school too early or for parts of the population living in more rural areas and thus not profiting from the same quality education offered in the larger city centres – a phenomenon to be observed both in the EU and in Central Asia.

It was strongly agreed that a continuation of the discussion and exchange of good practice was recommendable, and the event confirmed a high level of engagement and cooperation potential among the participants. It is clear that the key role of educational policies in this area is to ensure that the content of education will strengthen learners’ commitment to non-violence and peaceful behaviour and as well as create an inclusive and safe learning environment, but there is also a common understanding that a coordinated approach is needed: policymakers, teachers, NGOs, private companies, families and parents should work together to identify and implement the most efficient national and local solutions.

The agenda and downloadable presentations can be found on the event page.

This webinar followed on from previous web-based seminars organised by CAEP on Quality Assurance and Accreditation and National Qualifications Frameworks. Gender Equality was a priority area that was highlighted at the Second Meeting for Ministers of Education (MIN) in Astana in 2017; with all ministers welcoming the exchange on how education can contribute to addressing gender inequalities. The aims of the webinar were to raise awareness of gender equality as a factor for sustainable socio-economic development, discuss the main aspects of persisting gender inequality in education, familiarise participants with the EU Gender Action Plan 2016-2020 (EU GAP II) and share good practice for gender mainstreaming and gender budgeting activities from the EU and Central Asia.

The webinar kicked off with an introduction to the preliminary findings of a recent CAEP report on gender equality in education by expert Ms. Dilbar Turakhanova. The objectives of the review were to study the current situation in both Central Asia and the EU, identify good practices for policies, methods and instruments supporting gender equality, and establish a common basis for knowledge and understanding of gender relevant issues in HE and VET. Ms Turakhanova presented an overview of EU policy to support gender equality in education and the use of gender equality plans at institutional level and then shared the main findings of the first round of the review, which has been implemented in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan (with Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to be added at a later date). She concluded with some examples of good practice in the Central Asia region and some recommendations for future approaches in the region. The full report will be published on the CAEP website shortly.

Case studies from Latvia, Poland and Romania were then presented, looking at challenges and good practice in gender equality in education in each of these three EU member states, and with the opportunity for questions from participants.  Ms. Zarina Chikibayeva from the Bologna Centre in Kazakhstan also outlined some of the tools being used to strengthen gender equality in her country, and the Chairman of the Women’s Committee of the Khokimiyat of the Chilanzar District of Tashkent, Ms. Ganieva Galnora, put forward case studies from Uzbekistan.

The discussions showed that although much has been achieved in terms of gender equality, significant inequalities still exist in Central Asia. While women make up the majority of academic staff in education, they are still largely under-represented in the top positions (rectors, school directors, leading roles in ministries) and a strong gender bias also exists with women choosing “female” professions in social areas and education, rather than in technical subjects. This gender segregation is highly visible in the labour market, where a pay-gap can also be seen. Finally, the collection and processing of gender data in education has room for improvement. The commitment of Central Asian countries to the topic varies and it is generally either not understood or perceived as important, or not addressed properly due to a lack of human and financial resources.

In EU countries, particularly the new member states from Central Eastern Europe, women’s position in society is generally different, and gender equality in education, politics and the labour market is formally guaranteed to a much larger extent. However, many challenges are similar to those observed in Central Asia, such as the persistence of gender stereotypes affecting girls’ and boys’ educational and professional choices, and persisting inequalities in social roles in the family, the labour market and public life.

The discussions made it clear that the delegates were well aware of these challenges and actively welcomed the steps currently being undertaken to contribute to more gender equality in education both in the EU and Central Asia.

The agenda and downloadable presentations from the webinar can be found on the event page.

On 11^th October a Regional Seminar on ‘The role of education in supporting social inclusion and resilience against radicalisation among youth in Central Asia and the European Union’ will take place in Tashkent. The role of education in preventing and countering violent extremism was identified as a priority for EU cooperation in Central Asia at the Second Meeting for Ministers of Education (MIN) in Astana in 2017, in line with the global commitment to Sustainable Development Goals, in particular to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” (SDG 4).

This seminar aims to contribute to policy dialogue on the link between quality education and training and issues of social inclusion, economic integration and resilience among young people. The event will be attended by up to 50 delegates, including representatives from Central Asian Ministries for Education and Labour, staff from HE and VET institutions, youth and student associations and non-formal and community organisations, as well as participants from EU institutions and Member States and other relevant organisations such as UNESCO and the OSCE.

Presentations will be made on the EU strategy to strengthen inclusive education systems, the role of the Mahalla Institution, and the “Global Citizenship Education” approach; during interactive workshops participants will discuss the use of non-formal education and community-based approaches, how to ensure equitable access to quality education for vulnerable groups, and the transition from education to employment.

The day before the seminar, a webinar will be held on ‘Gender Equality in Education’, another priority topic highlighted at the Second Meeting for Ministers.  This will be the second in a series of up to five online webinars planned for the extension phase of CAEP 2, the first of which was held in July on the role of sectoral councils in developing NQF. Webinars are considered to be not only an add-on to face-to-face meetings, but genuine forms of sharing best practice and facilitating policy dialogue at practitioner level; they can also make more efficient use of existing funds and enable the participation of a wider audience.

The webinar will aim to raise awareness for gender equality as a relevant factor for sustainable socio-economic development;  familiarise participants with the EU Gender Action Plan 2016-2020 (EU GAP II); discuss the main aspects of gender equality and persisting inequality in education; and  share good practice for well-designed and implemented activities with regard to gender mainstreaming and gender budgeting.

In preparation for the webinar the CAEP Team is conducting a review of the current situation of gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) in HE and VET in Central Asia and identifying good practices for policies, methods and instruments supporting gender equality. The findings of the review will be used to open a debate on the issue among policy makers, education practitioners and related stakeholders.

More information on the Regional Seminar

More information on the Webinar

The topic of the first webinar was “The role of Sectoral Councils in CA and the EU in the context of National Qualifications Frameworks”. In the First Ministerial Meeting of Ministers for Education in Riga in June 2015, Ministers agreed that enhanced cooperation with stakeholders, including social partners and enterprises, provides a significant contribution to the development of VET and HE alike. In this context, Sectoral Councils (SeC) play an important role in aligning employers’ needs for a qualified workforce with the overarching approach to provide a coherent system of qualifications.  Although SeC had already been addressed during various CAEP events, Central Asia stakeholders had expressed interest in further, practice-oriented discussion on the working principles and tasks of SeC.

The webinar was co-organised by CAEP and the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan “Atameken”. Experts from CAEP and ETF were joined by participants from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and the EU Member States Latvia and Poland, representing Ministries of Education and Labour, state agencies; business associations, chambers, companies; education practitioners HEI and VET institutions and international and donor organisations.

Prior to the webinar a set of questions to be addressed during the webinar had been collated by the experts from inputs from all the CA countries – these then provided the background for the presentations.

Following an introduction to the webinar from the CAEP Team, the moderators then presented a map mind of these 26 questions which participants could use as points for discussion. Examples of functioning Sectoral Councils in Kazakhstan, Russia, Latvia and Poland were then presented and their impact on the development of NQF discussed. In addition, a specialist from the European Training Foundation presented an overview of the experience and lessons learnt by ETF through their work with Sectoral Councils through the Torino Process.

Throughout the webinar, opportunities were given for Q&A and at the end participants were given a practical follow-up task to complete, in which they were asked to draw up proposals for the creation and operation of a sectoral council in their sector considering the issues discussed during the webinar.

The agenda and downloadable materials can be found on the event page.

Further webinars on “Gender Equality in Education, “Innovative Teaching methodologies” and “Financing of education systems and institutions” are planned for the autumn.

The meeting was attended by delegates from Ministries of Education and Labour and educational institutions in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, along with education experts from the EU and representatives from CAEP and the European Training Foundation (ETF).

The aim of this working group is to enhance Central Asian countries’ capability and use of evidence for policy analysis and policy making in the fields of VET and HE. The initiative is based on the policy learning methodology and is being developed and implemented by CAEP and ETF, building on ETF’s experience with the Torino Process.

This fourth meeting was dedicated to evidence on the transition process, covering specifically the topic of career guidance. Transition is considered a particularly pertinent topic as it is closely connected to the issue of employability; requires the co-operation of both Ministries of Education and Labour, and employer organisations; has been identified as important by Torino Process members in Central Asia; and has an EU level dimension.

After introductions from Christine Hemschemeier, ETF, and Christian Wagner, CAEP, and a recapitulation of the key aspects of the evidence cycle, representatives from each of the five CA countries presented an existing overview of career counselling in their country and relevant issues and challenges. This was followed by a case study from Latvia, presented by Aleksandra Joma, which focused on the concept of lifelong career development within the EU and the role of employment services.

The second day saw delegates work together in country teams to map career guidance in their respective countries, looking especially at the infrastructure, roles and current challenges. Participants later worked in mixed groups to discuss how to reach out to three specific groups which have until now not been very well represented within the VET system; women and girls, people with special needs and NEET (young people Not in Education, Employment, or Training).

Finally, on the last day, the delegates reconvened in their country teams to identify evidence gaps in career guidance in their countries and report back on what they had learned from the meeting and what activities they were planning as follow-up.

The 5th, final meeting of the working group in October will look at graduate tracer studies; the importance of systematic data collection in the tracking of graduates has also been highlighted as crucial to enhancing employability in the region.

The agenda and downloadable materials can be found on the event page.