The Philippines and New Zealand have agreed to recognize each other’s qualifications, paving the way for Filipino graduates to work and study in New Zealand.

This comes after the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) and the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) signed the agreement during a meeting in Wellington on Tuesday.

CHEd chairperson Prospero de Vera III said the cooperation is a “ground-breaking success” in terms of establishing a qualifications framework between the two countries. He emphasized that this is a response to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to strengthen the internationalization of Philippine higher education.

“We thank Dr. Grant Klinkum and the Philippine Embassy in New Zealand led by H.E. Kira Christianne Azucena for collaborating with us to ensure the achievement of our joint objective,” De Vera said.

The Philippine Embassy in New Zealand also expressed support for the initiative, saying it aims to strengthen the long-standing people-to-people ties between the two countries.

The CHEd-NZQA education cooperation supports qualification recognition between the Philippines and New Zealand to enable employment of people holding a Bachelor’s Degree from either country.

Its joint comparability report developed in January 2024 provides a detailed understanding of Bachelor’s Degrees from both countries, their position in each economy’s education system, and the quality assurance systems that underpin the qualifications.

The mobility of professionals will focus on the fields of healthcare, nursing, engineering, and teaching education, which are the most in-demand and mobile sectors.

Furthermore, the cooperation will facilitate the admission of students from the Philippines and New Zealand to postgraduate education in both countries.

The CHEd delegation in New Zealand is set to explore more collaborations with institutions and agencies in New Zealand until 23 August to boost the internationalization of Philippine higher education.