Higher Education in Zimbabwe

The tertiary sector of education is operated by the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education which includes universities, technical, polytechnic and teacher training colleges and various vocational training centers. Tertiary education was first introduced to Zimbabwe in 1957 by the University College of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, now known as the University of Zimbabwe. The nation's independency in 1980 expanded the University of Zimbabwe's enrollment from 2,240 to 9,017 by 1990. The National Council for Higher Education was established in 1990 as a measure of quality insurance of higher education in Zimbabwe. Increasing access to education in recent decades has increased the number of higher level institutions in the country. For example, eight more universities were established between 1999 and 2005. The Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education (ZIMCHE) was formed in 2006 as another measure to guarantee quality and accreditation for university education. As of 2012, there were fifteen registered universities (nine public and five private), fifteen teachers' colleges, eight polytechnics and two industrial training colleges.