The Competition Committee proposed certification of private training centers
The Competition Committee proposed voluntary certification of private educational services and the introduction of uniform rules for paid educational services.
Competition Committee proposes certification of private educational centers
Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — The Committee for Development of Competition and Consumer Protection of Uzbekistan has proposed introducing a voluntary certification system for non-state educational services, as well as developing unified rules for the provision of paid educational services by private educational organizations.
According to the press service of the department, over the past three years, the committee has considered 2,070 appeals from citizens related to the education sector. 96 percent of these complaints concerned the activities of non-state educational institutions.
The most common reasons for appeals were that the quality of education did not meet consumer expectations, charging for services that were not actually provided, not providing complete information about the terms of the contract and the procedure for refunding funds, difficulties in terminating fixed-term contracts, as well as failure to fulfill promises made in advertising.
According to the results of the review of complaints, approximately 1 billion soums were recalculated in favor of consumers.
The committee noted that the current system of regulation of the non-state education sector does not have sufficient control mechanisms and uniform requirements for the provision of paid educational services. This in some cases leads to violations of consumer rights.
The department also studied international experience in ensuring the quality of educational services. It cites the French Qualiopi, Swiss eduQua, and Dutch NRTO systems as examples of mechanisms for auditing and certifying private educational organizations.
In order to improve the private education market, the committee proposed introducing a voluntary certification system for educational services, developing rules for the provision of paid educational services by private organizations, and establishing minimum requirements for their relations with consumers.
The Committee believes that the implementation of these proposals will improve the quality of educational services, strengthen consumer protection, ensure fair competition, and form uniform and transparent requirements for market participants.
The relevant proposals have been sent to the competent state bodies.