The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education in Andorra (AQUA) and the Malta Further and Higher Education Authority (MFHEA) have held the closing meeting of their cooperation within the SIQA project.

The project has provided an opportunity to strengthen the exchange of experiences and good practices between the two agencies. One of its highlights was the visit of an MFHEA delegation to Andorra on 23-24 July, during which both teams exchanged practices on governance and independence, evaluation processes and criteria, the selection and training of peer reviewers, internal quality assurance and stakeholder engagement. 

The conclusion of the SIQA project does not, however, mark the end of this cooperation, but rather the beginning of a new stage. AQUA and MFHEA are part of an initiative bringing together quality assurance agencies from small European states, alongside agencies from Iceland, Montenegro and Cyprus, following the cooperation agreement signed in 2024. 

Next week, during the ENQA General Assembly in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the agencies plan to continue working towards the formal establishment of this network. Discussions are expected to address its internal regulations and official name, as well as shared priorities and future joint activities.

In this way, cooperation initially developed through a European project is evolving into a lasting relationship between agencies that share many of the challenges associated with operating in smaller higher education systems.