The Sultanate of Oman is a developing country with a higher education sector which is undergoing rapid growth. In parallel with this, the national quality assurance agency for higher education, the Oman Academic Accreditation Authority (OAAA), is also developing as an organization. It is recognized that in times of rapid change and transformation in higher education, both higher education institutions and associated entities such as national quality assurance agencies, need to engage in effective strategic planning. In line with this, the OAAA has embedded a requirement for effective strategic planning in the external quality assurance processes which it is developing and implementing. In addition to having a quality assurance remit, the OAAA has a formal remit to support continuous quality improvement in higher education in Oman. To this end, the OAAA has also embedded use of the analytical tool ADRI (approach, deployment, results, improvement) in its external quality assurance processes. This study considers OAAA’s three distinctive planning phases with the first beginning in 2001 when the OAAA’s predecessor, the Oman Accreditation Council (OAC), was established. For various reasons the OAAA has been slow in the development of its own internal quality systems. OAAA strategic planning has evolved over the years, with limited planning in the first cycle of activities. Comprehensive planning for the quality management of the whole Omani higher education sector was conducted in the second cycle that started in 2006. At the end of 2012, following the acquisition of its status as a fully independent entity marking the beginning of the third cycle, the OAAA conducted a reflective selfstudy of its own planning and activities using ADRI. This study demonstrates the evolution of strategic planning in the OAC/OAAA and the way in which this reflects the dynamic and developing context in which it is working. This review, based on the use of ADRI, has effectively identified areas where strategic planning in the OAAA needs to be enhanced and it is currently proving effective in guiding the OAAA in developing its strategic planning function.

The Sultanate of Oman is a developing country with a higher education sector which is undergoing rapid growth. In parallel with this, the national quality assurance agency for higher education, the Oman Academic Accreditation Authority (OAAA), is also developing as an organization. It is recogniz...