Uzbekistan joins UNESCO convention enabling diploma recognition in 38 countries

In early November, Uzbekistan ratified the Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education, becoming the first Central Asian country to join the document.

The Agency for Assessment of Knowledge and Qualifications explained whether diplomas issued by higher education institutions in Russia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and other countries would automatically be valid in Uzbekistan without undergoing the nostrification procedure.

Under national legislation, Uzbekistan may directly recognize foreign diplomas, without exams or additional verification, if this is stipulated by international agreements.

The Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications is the first international instrument of its kind created under UNESCO. It requires participating countries to recognize verified qualifications obtained in other states that have joined the Convention.

At the same time, each country recognizes diplomas according to its own national regulations, and recognition may be refused only if there are substantial differences between education systems.

Currently, 38 countries are parties to the Global Convention, while around 10 more are in the process of joining.

List of Convention member states:

Europe:

France, United Kingdom, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Hungary, Andorra, Armenia, Croatia, Estonia, Lithuania, Moldova, Romania, Slovakia, Georgia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Holy See, San Marino, Luxembourg

Americas:

Cuba, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Uruguay

Africa:

South Africa, Tunisia, Cabo Verde, Djibouti, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Senegal

Asia:

Japan, South Korea, Mongolia, Yemen, Palestine

Australia and Oceania:

Australia, New Zealand

Uzbekistan will become a full participant in the Convention three months after submitting the formal confirmation document.

“Mutual recognition mechanisms for qualifications (diplomas) apply only between countries that are parties to the Convention,” the agency noted.