The international partners of the HEP‑TED – Higher Education Pedagogies for Teacher Education Development project gathered online on 4 March for their annual Project Board meeting, bringing together representatives from all six partner universities in Rwanda and Finland, Higher Education Council of Rwanda and Hills Connect to reflect on progress and map the final phase of the collaboration.
Despite the packed agenda, the meeting unfolded in a warm and collaborative spirit, reflecting the strong sense of partnership among the institutions. The session, chaired by Florien Nsanganwimana from the University of Rwanda College of Education, highlighted how the partnership has continued to deepen cooperation between institutions while delivering concrete results in teacher education development.
Looking back at 2025, partners presented progress across the project’s three main areas: quality assurance, pedagogical development, and cross-institutional collaboration.
Work on strengthening quality assurance systems was highlighted by Luiz Alonso de Andrade from Tampere University. Activities included quality assurance workshops, collaboration with industry partners, and the piloting of a permanent forum for quality assurance management among partner institutions.
Major advances were also reported in the development of teacher education programmes. At Rwanda Polytechnic, a key milestone was reached when the Postgraduate Diploma in Technical Teacher Education (PDTTE) received accreditation from the Higher Education Council of Rwanda.
Meanwhile, the University of Rwanda College of Education has continued developing pedagogical programmes and tools that support reflective teaching practices. These include newly designed self-assessment instruments for educators, and collaborative supervision of master’s theses with experts from the University of Helsinki. Besides the work on pedagogical programs, inclusion training and digital champions work were mentioned as common activities with both Rwanda Polytechnic and University of Rwanda, College of Education.
Partners also emphasised the growing collaboration across institutions, with project activities increasingly showcased at international events and sparking new partnerships beyond the original project framework.
Reflecting on the progress, Eugene Ndabaga from the University of Rwanda highlighted the value of the partnership.
“We are very excited about the work done across all project areas. The visits to Finland and the joint seminars provided rich knowledge and new perspectives, and the shared supervision and staff collaboration have been a big step forward.”
Financial and qualitative reporting presented during the meeting confirmed that the project is progressing well.
By the end of 2025, the overall expenditure rate had reached 63.55 percent, which is a strong figure for a large international multi-partner project. All partner institutions had submitted their financial reports on time, with auditing processes already completed.
On the qualitative side, the results also point to a positive impact. Leadership satisfaction with the project scored 4.7 out of 6, while 592 staff members across the partner institutions participated in capacity-building activities during the year.
Student feedback has also been encouraging. A new indicator measuring student satisfaction with improvements in education quality reached 5.32 out of 6, suggesting that the pedagogical developments are beginning to show tangible effects in teaching and learning.
The project’s reach has also expanded significantly, with 30 additional educational institutions engaged through training, collaboration, or dissemination activities in 2025.
With the project now entering its final phase, partners outlined an ambitious programme of activities for 2026.
Hanna Kontio mentioned upcoming events including the Rwanda–Nordic-Baltic Forum in March, workshops on pedagogical leadership and quality assurance in Kigali and Rukara, and the final workshop of the project’s Digital Champions programme hosted by JAMK University of Applied Sciences.
The collaboration will also continue through joint research initiatives, Erasmus+ staff exchanges, and participation in the Rwanda Conference on Education Research in June, where the project plans to organise its own symposium.
The project will culminate later this year with a final HEP-program seminar in Helsinki, bringing together partners to reflect on results and future cooperation.
One theme that repeatedly emerged during the meeting was sustainability. Partners noted that the collaboration has matured significantly over the years, with institutions now better understanding each other’s contexts, strengths, and needs.
This shared understanding has helped shape initiatives that are not simply transferred between institutions but developed together.
As the chair concluded the meeting, the focus turned to the final months of the project — and the importance of ensuring that the results continue to grow beyond it.
The chair highlighted that while the project may be approaching its formal end, the partnerships and ideas it has created are likely to continue shaping collaboration in teacher education for years to come.