Higher Education Authority (HEA) has set April 30, 2026, as the deadline for submission of student and academic staff data by all Higher Education Institutions (HEIs).
This forms part of the ongoing development of a centralized Student Database and the commencement of student indexing in Zambia.
According to the Authority, the directive is issued pursuant to the Higher Education Act, 2013, and the Higher Education (Amendment) Act, 2021.
The two Acts mandate the HEA to establish and maintain a comprehensive database of all students enrolled in HEIs, and to collect annual statistical data from all registered and recognized institutions.
In a communiqué to HEIs, Authority Director-General, Professor Kazhila Chinsembu, revealed that the Authority has made significant progress in developing the centralized database.
“Consequently, all student information submitted by institutions will be uploaded onto this database,” Prof. Chinsembu said.
He further clarified that the process marks the beginning of indexing students within the higher education system.
“Kindly note that HEA numbers for students will be generated strictly based on the data submitted,” he said.
The Director General encouraged all Higher Education Institutions to submit up-to-date and complete data capturing all students.
He cautioned that students whose details are not submitted will be inconvenienced, as they will not be allocated HEA numbers.
“HEIs are required to submit an Excel workbook containing two datasets, namely Current Students and Academic Staff, with details including student identity information, programme of study, and staff qualifications and academic ranks,” Prof. Chinsembu urged.
Prof. Chinsembu also encouraged students to engage their institutions to ensure that their details are submitted as part of this national exercise.
He assured HEIs that all data collected will be handled with the highest level of confidentiality, as access will be restricted to authorized personnel.
“This exercise marks a critical step in strengthening the management of higher education data in Zambia and supports the broader national agenda of building a coordinated and well-regulated higher education system,” he added.
