ABSTRACT
This chapter presents UNESCO's perspective on quality in higher education. Quality assurance is seen as a priority, while recognising that developing countries which most need to enhance the quality of their provision have least resources to do so. The UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs Programme is described as an attempt to disseminate expertise and encourage international collaboration. On the basis of its regional discussions, UNESCO's Division of Higher Education prepared a draft policy paper in which there is an important section dedicated to 'Quality in Higher Education'. The demand for increased relevance in higher education goes hand in hand with the demand for its enhanced quality. The UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs Programme basically involves the creation of professorships enabling visiting scholars to provide core expertise for the development of centres of excellence in key disciplines and in the fields related to sustainable development. This initiative completed a series of other UNESCO actions, which have implications for quality in higher education.
