Innovative Finance
August 1, 2024
Context and Problem
Refugees, asylum-seekers, and internally displaced persons often lack proof of their qualifications, which limits their access to education and employment. Moreover, the absence of a universal system for recognizing prior learning prevents these individuals from equitably accessing education and employment opportunities. The UNESCO Qualifications Passport (UQP) aims to resolve this.
Solution
UQP is a universal tool for recognizing academic, professional, and vocational qualifications for displaced individuals, even those who do not hold full documentation. Through UQP, these individuals can access tertiary and higher education, employment, internships, scholarships, and vocational training. This intervention aligns with global frameworks like SDG 4 and the Global Compact for Refugees.
Candidates gather application information from national authorities, after which they complete a self-evaluation questionnaire online or on paper. Once done, the credential evaluators review the questionnaire and assess eligibility, and the eligible candidates participate in an interview-based evaluation, and the ones who complete the process receive a UNESCO Qualifications Passport.
UQP was developed in partnership with the Council of Europe, ensuring global portability and consistent quality assurance, and is also linked to the European Qualifications Passport for Refugees EQPR for a standardized global framework.
Impact
UQP empowers displaced populations through enabling access to higher education and employment, strengthens systems by supporting the development of inclusive higher education policies and providing pathways for marginalized populations to integrate into education and the labor market, and has wider benefits such as reducing socioeconomic pressures on host countries.
Note: further studies and analysis will have to be conducted to understand the impact of the intervention properly.