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The involvement of stakeholders such as employers, alumni, and students has always been considered a key element in improving the higher education (HE) system. While considering stakeholders as key players in serving the market and in improving HE instruction, a two-sided collaborative involvement should aim at satisfying the mutual interests and overcoming existing barriers. Quality assurance systems have always supported crossing these barriers to link with the external stakeholders. However, many of the external quality assurance agencies (EQA) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region specify a group of external holders, limiting the various types of key stakeholders needed to enhance the academic programs. On the other hand, there are encountered risks in involving stakeholders if left with no objective guidance, especially that quality agencies are formidably urging the universities to consider the external stakeholders’ inputs to satisfy the quality assurance standards. The main objective of this chapter is to investigate the types of stakeholders’ and their levels of involvement within the local higher education institutions (HEIs). The chapter aims to provide an insight to invest in this involvement and utilize it to further improve the programs and their graduate attributes and suggests actions that would proficiently and truly enhance the involvement of external stakeholders. The outcomes of this chapter are expected to guide the EQAs and the HEIs to develop new practices in involving stakeholders, such as curriculum input, collegiate internships, aligning graduate attributes to market needs, financial support through endowments, professional development, and partnerships in service-level agreements.

This research aims to determine the levels of education quality (EQ), technology usage (TU), students' satisfaction (SS) and the impact of EQ on SS. Also, it seeks to find out how TU as a moderator affects EQ and SS in Pakistani private higher education institutions (HEIs).

A total of 440 postgraduate students at eleven private universities in Lahore, Punjab Province, Pakistan, participated in empirical research and data were obtained through the use of an online questionnaire. Simple random sampling was used to choose participants and partial least square structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the data.

The findings revealed that Pakistani private HEIs have a medium level of EQ, TU and SS. Furthermore, the data reveal the existence of a significant positive relationship between EQ and SS, whereas TU as a moderator was found to negatively affect EQ and SS.

Postgraduate students of private HEIs in Pakistan were considered for this investigation and this study was limited to testing only in Punjab province. Another limitation of this study is that it was based on a research framework from previous research and literature. This study employed questionnaire surveys to conduct evaluations of teachers' teaching quality by university students. Furthermore, the questionnaire employed student self-evaluations to assess the quality of teaching. The research data would be more detailed if it were possible to include teachers' self-evaluations of their teaching quality.

The current study provides key insights for policymakers, higher education commission and HEIs. The results suggest leveraging the identified medium levels of EQ, TU and student satisfaction in Pakistani private HEIs. In an effort to boost the medium levels, policymakers are encouraged to enhance the teaching and learning experience by robustly integrating Web 4.0 technologies. Institutions can intervene strategically by investing in infrastructure and innovative tools aligned with students' technological needs. Likewise, policymakers and institutions can optimize learning management systems (LMS) by developing and implementing policies that encourage their adoption and optimization across HEIs. This may contribute to the accomplishment of the United Nations' sustainable development goal of providing quality education. Moreover, with the help of this research HEIs can establish minimum quality standards regarding academic teaching and learning materials. Implementing the above-mentioned practical implications might boost student satisfaction in HEIs which would benefit not only students but also the institutions.

The novelty of the article lies in the fact that it addresses the gap in the existing literature by exploring the levels of EQ, TU and student satisfaction in the context of private higher education in Pakistan. Furthermore, this study investigated whether TU served as a moderator in the relationship between student satisfaction and UNESCO-recommended EQ. This study elaborates on EQ indicators recommended by UNESCO in Pakistan’s private higher education sector.

This study aims to explore various determinants of university attractiveness and its relationship with sustainable institutes. Further, the study examines the mediating role of perceived student support and sense of belongingness on the relationship between university attractiveness and sustainable institutes.

The data analysis was conducted with 637 responses from the students from private universities located in the northern region of India. Variance based partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was applied in the study to investigate the proposed conceptual model on sustainable higher institutions. Additionally, by applying PLS Predict, the predictive relevance of sustainable institutions with important and performing constructs was found out.

The results of this study indicate that university attractiveness plays a critical role in enhancing perceived student support, and it has a direct and significant impact on developing sustainable institutes. Further, students’ sense of belongingness is expressed as significant mediator between university attractiveness and sustainable institutes. The predictive relevance of the study was reported to be high. Most important indicators of university attractiveness were found to be teaching, research and publications, branding and promotion, and diversity in courses offered by the private universities.

The conceptual model under study can be investigated with a moderating effect of private and government universities in future. Additionally, the role of additional variables in online scenario under current pandemic situation can be assessed through the model used in this study. Future research can be done by using qualitative analysis through thematic analysis and sentiment analysis of students in higher education institutes.

The present study is the first to explore the mediating relationship of perceived student support and sense of belongingness with university attractiveness and sustainable institutes. The conceptual framework can prove to be important for education specialists, administrators of education institutes at university level and policymakers. The study offers effective ideas for policymakers to bring sustainability in education sector in near future especially in emerging economies and attain sustainable development goals.

The paper examines the succession management strategies and the preparation level of heirs in the context of family-owned educational institutions in Nepal.

Sixteen in-depth, semi-structured interviews with the institution's leader were conducted. Each interview was transcribed using content analysis. Several themes and new items emerged that define the institutional strategies in succession management.

The paper provides insight into the challenges of implementing effective succession management strategies. The identified themes are traits, processes, challenging aspects and effective plans. The study's findings show the lack of awareness about the importance of succession planning among the institution owners due to the availability of limited resources. The paper also provides some insights into how family ownership and management are done and the lack of formal processes in succession management strategies.

This paper offers readers the chance to think about succession planning strategies. Also, it adds value in their critical analysis of the succession plan. The study advised the learners to consider additional elements that can impact succession planning, such as experience, educational requirements and their desire to work. It will aid researchers in considering the societal perspective of the successor, which is also a significant worry.

It focuses on a specific context, private schools in Nepal, and examines the challenges they face in implementing succession management strategies. The paper tries to identify the approach that may reveal potential solutions that have not been considered. The paper aims to clearly articulate the unique contributions of the study and explain how it advances the existing literature on succession management.

This paper aims to find the incidence of university sustainability, as sustainability practices, in university performance at private universities.

Quantitative research using structural equation modelling. Data collection and analysis followed sustainability and performance scales from previous research. The scales were validated by surveying students, teachers and administrative staff of five private universities in Medellin, Colombia. The responses (i.e. 5,344 useful answers) were collected between April 2019 and December 2020 and analysed using the Smart partial least square (PLS) software and the PLS calculation methodology.

The results confirmed the reliability and validity of the sustainability and performance university measurement models and validated the dimensions proposed to determine sustainability and performance holistically in private universities. The results confirmed that universities implementing sustainability holistically in their system positively impact their performance as higher education institutions. The university sustainability is forecasting the University Performance in about 60% of the universities analysed, with a considerable contribution from sustainability in outreach and strategic management.

This study was cross-sectional and empirically validated the model of sustainability and performance at five private universities in a single period and territory. A broader validation from longitudinal studies considering other universities in Colombia and Latin America is suggested to understand local and regional trends better.

Results provided a model for better understanding the incidence of sustainability in performance holistically at private universities in developing countries such as Colombia. In addition, the proposed dimensions and model could help regional decision-making on higher education.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is one of the first attempts relating a structural equation model and inter-university research on the incidence of sustainability in private university performance. This work contributes to a local consensus on sustainability and performance models at private universities. Furthermore, from this research emerged a joint policy framework for incorporating sustainability holistically and regionally as an effective strategy for universities and their commitment to sustainable development.

This study aims to investigate records management practices in Malawian private universities with a focus on University of Livingstonia.

The study used embedded case study design using a mixed methods approach. A survey questionnaire, semi-structured interview guide and a document review were used to collect data from University of Livingstonia staff.

The study found that University of Livingstonia created records such as minutes, grades, mails, theses, policy documents and reports. Some of the challenges related to records management at the institution were uncoordinated records management practices due to, among others, lack of records management policy, retention and disposal schedules among others. It further reported a number of factors frustrating the success of records management practices at UNILIA such as lack of management support, poor funding and lack of information communication technology infrastructure. Nevertheless, the study acknowledged the role of records management at University of Livingstonia.

Previous studies on records management in Malawi focused on public sector. However, this is a novel study undertaken in the private higher education. Therefore, it forms a basis for conceptualising records management phenomena in the private higher education in Malawi.

Population ageing will bring economic challenges in the future. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether increased educational level could mitigate the consequences of population ageing on economic sustainability, measured as the gap between labour income and consumption.

Using the National Transfer Accounts (NTA) methodology, the authors decompose labour income and consumption by age and educational level (low, medium and high) and compare obtained age profiles with those calculated conventionally. In addition, using the population projections by age and educational level, the authors project both profiles to 2060 for selected EU countries and assess future economic sustainability.

The results show that the highly educated have a significantly higher surplus for a longer period then those with lower and medium education. Therefore, the improved educational level of individuals will have a substantially positive impact on labour income in the future—on average by about 32% by 2060 for all EU countries included. However, as the better educated also consume more, higher production does not fully translate into improved economic sustainability, but the resulting net effect is still positive at about 19%.

The authors present for the first time an NTA by education for 15 EU countries and show the importance of including education in the analysis of the economic life cycle. The authors also show that increased educational level will mitigate the consequences of population ageing on economic sustainability in the future.

Higher productivity in the potato value chain in Rwanda requires good quality seed potatoes. The article analyzes how innovations were introduced in the framework of a development project resulting in a partnership between a firm and two educational institutions to produce better seed potatoes, using the Triple Helix approach.

In the Triple Helix model government, academia and the private sector work together to develop and introduce innovations. This led to producing and introducing improved seed potatoes at an affordable price through a public private partnership (PPP). Interviews with experts and a survey of local producers were carried out to identify factors influencing the success of the partnership.

A Service, Training and Innovation Center (STIC) has been created to produce the first clean potato seeds in Africa on a commercial scale, based on cultivation of in vitro potato plantlets and aeroponics to produce mini-tubers. It is called Seed Potato Advancement Centre, an education–enterprise partnership, using these plantlets to produce mini-tubers through aeroponics. Seed multipliers are responsible for the next three stages of seed multiplication. The final product is the certified potato, sold to ware potato farmers. The availability of disease-free seed potatoes in Rwanda gives a boost to the potato value chains and contributes to food security. The partnership was successful because of the support from the government and donors, with the private sector and the extension services helping to implement the innovations effectively.

The limitation is that the number of experts interviewed is limited and the survey did not only deal with potato-related activities. The focus is on one region only, but the most important potato growing area in Rwanda.

STICs function as a tool for cooperation between government, private sector and the knowledge sector to achieve commercial and development goals. They function as a channel for technology transfer. They allow applied research, including agronomic research; information collection; and dissemination, networking, training, organization of outreach activities. The model can be repeated in other sectors and countries.

The paper looks at a PPP in agriculture with educational institutions. Second, the Triple Helix and value chain literature is used to study the introduction and implementation of appropriate innovations, while factors determining the success of the partnership were identified. This concerns the first production of clean seed potatoes in Africa on a commercial scale.

The fundamental purpose of this study is to analyse the determinants of higher education quality in Afghanistan based on insights from student perceptions. Understanding this part holds paramount importance in enunciating sound policies for the smooth functioning of the higher education sector of Afghanistan.

This study aims to classify students' background and demographic data, distinguishing their perception of higher education quality using a deductive research approach. A sample of 418 students from five top private universities in Afghanistan was chosen to assess their perceptions of higher education dimensions by employing a multinomial regression analysis.

The findings indicate that extracurricular activities, students' scholarship status, parents' education, age, previous academic results and the university they attend significantly impact their perception of the quality of higher education.

This research is essential for education policymakers and university administrators. These findings can be replicated to develop regulations and target specific groups of students to ensure a favourable academic environment and boost the brand image of their universities. This would ensure long-term quality improvement and assurance outcomes, allowing higher education institutions to compete with regional and international institutions.

This study contributes to identifying the determinants of higher education quality based on the perceptions of the students in Afghanistan.

A new High School Equivalency (HSE) policy was developed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in response to a shift toward a knowledge-based economy and a transformation toward STEM education. The purpose of this study is to explore and understand the stakeholders' perceptions and experiences in implementing the new HSE policy in a school that follows a US curriculum in the UAE. The study was conducted before the COVID-19 lockdown. The phenomenological approach was used to shed light on the implementation of the HSE policy in an active learning environment and the challenges facing the school's stakeholders. The study results reveal the challenges that stakeholders face in implementing the HSE policy and their experiences in offering students the courses they need. All stakeholders agreed that the transformation toward STEM education requires proper implementation of the high school equivalency policy in an active learning environment that help in developing students' twenty-first-century skills and prepare them to meet the job market needs.