HIGHER Education Loans and Scholarship Board Chief Executive Officer John Machayi says he will use his role as president of the Association of African Higher Education Financing Agencies (AAHEFA) to gain insights and leverage how other countries fund and manage their universities.

Dr Machayi says this will be done through benchmarking as Zambia will learn from African countries instead of going outside the continent.

In an interview with ZANIS, Dr Machayi said the Higher Education Financing Agencies will foster collaboration and share knowledge on best practices in higher education financing not just in Zambia but across Africa.

He added that the Association will not only focus on student financing authorities but universities and colleges where students are sponsored.

Dr Machayi further stated that his Association will further influence increments to students financing in the institutions through advocacy as the demand for higher education is high. 

He noted that benchmarking has promoted innovation through Information and Communications Technology as most institutions have core information technology systems developed internally.

Dr Machayi said being voted as president of African Higher Education Financing Agencies is a clear indication that the board is doing well to improve higher education in the country.