In the media

Egyptian authorities recently busted what they said was the biggest illegal organ trafficking ring in the country’s history. The suspects include medical professors at the universities of Cairo and Ain Shams, Egypt’s two main public academic institutions, the Health Ministry said. Investigations by Egypt’s Administrative Control Authority and the Health Ministry focused on private hospitals and health centres. Authorities found “millions of dollars and gold bullion”, at the 10 centres.

Universities across the country may now have to resort to cashless means like bank transfers, cheques and credit/debit cards while making use of periodic funds from University Grants Commission (UGC). The commission said the move was in order to bring in accountability, transparency and seamlessness in the process of transfer of grants. The commission said it has virtually made payments cashless and decreased the interface between stakeholders and employees of the organisation.

A German finance expert has warned that the country’s federal states could be entering a “dangerous race to the bottom” regarding legislation on transparency in cooperation between industry and higher education. He believes that cooperation agreements should be publicly accessible in order to guarantee academic freedom. The professor of finance and political economy at Aalen University, contested a contract between the University of Mainz and the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation, the country’s largest pharmaceutical company that also engages in research.

Fraudsters purporting to be education officials are on the prowl, swindling teachers facing disciplinary action by promising to help deal with their cases. The fraudsters are working in cahoots with some unscrupulous Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education officials, demanding payments of between US$150 and US$500 to help the teachers in their impending disciplinary cases. Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe president, confirmed the unscrupulous behaviour by some ministry officials.

The door was slammed shut on politicians rushing to acquire quick degrees before next year’s General Election. A directive by the Kenyan President on Thursday said university students must meet the minimum admission requirements and lecturer times. The Education ministry was ordered to fully implement the directives. “Universities that do not heed these requirements should be dealt with according to the law,” said the President.

In South Africa, an incident at a school in Soweto revived the debate over false teacher qualifications. This week, a former primary school teacher stabbed a director who had suspended him. The teacher was dismissed after the school discovered, following a complaint from parents, that he had lied about his qualifications and had no diploma. According to the South African Council of Educators, dozens or even hundreds of teachers lie about their qualifications.

Cases of fraudulent educators at tertiary level have increased for the year 2016, the South African Council for Educators (Sace) announced. Sace chief operating officer said universities that are being targeted by fraudsters include the University of Zululand, Unisa and North West University. At least 20 educators at one of the universities are being prosecuted for fraud, she said. The educators in question were registered with Sace.

The Kenyan Certificate of Primary Education examinations ended last week while the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education examinations begin Monday. They both mark the culmination of a year of reforms of the systems and processes for managing those exams. While there is still a number of hurdles to cross in order to stamp out corruption entirely, the positive measures that the CS of Education has introduced will be celebrated in public when the results are announced in February, 2017.

The Higher Education Ministry will set up a National Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Registry to curb the production and usage of fraudulent academic titles by individuals and organisations. The ministry said the move will ensure credible use of academic titles, enable the public to verify information and deter bogus issuance of academic certificates. The most common fraudulently used and produced academic title in Malaysia is ‘Dr.’ as in a PhD graduate.

A leaked report has revealed “extreme” government concern after an academy trust was found to have paid its chief executive more than £82,000 for 15 weeks’ work. The investigation, which took place over June and July this year, also found that Wakefield City Academy were unable to produce the list of students receiving pupil premium payments (additional funding to raise the attainment of disadvantaged pupils in schools).