In the media

The Department of Education (DepEd) of the Philippines has partnered with Open Ownership to strengthen transparency and integrity in education procurement. DepEd manages the country’s largest education budget, making procurement a high-risk area for corruption. The initiative pilots the use of beneficial ownership data to identify hidden conflicts of interest, bid rotation, market concentration and undisclosed links among suppliers. The agreement includes technical assistance and contract analysis to reduce irregularities and aligns with the New Government Procurement Act.

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) of Indonesia is set to embed anti-corruption education into the national curriculum. The idea is to break the current vicious cycle of corruption, where young people in their 20s and 30s are already committing acts of corruption. The idea is to foster a culture of integrity and ethical behaviour among future generations, and to reduce corruption through anti-corruption education from an early age.

A former acting chairman of Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), i.e. the federal agency responsible for investigating and prosecuting financial crimes and corruption, has called for anti-corruption education to be integrated into primary and secondary school curricula, emphasizing that fighting corruption requires collective effort, and collaboration with judiciary and professional bodies.

Nigeria’s Federal Government (FG) has launched a unified portal to manage data across all polytechnics and technical institutions, with mandatory registration by December 2025. Developed by the National Board for Technical Education, the platform aims to enhance transparency, accountability, and operational efficiency in TVET, offering secure data management, streamlined institutional processes, and comprehensive technical support to improve service delivery nationwide.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and Moldova’s National Anticorruption Center hosted the “Anti-Corruption Café,” engaging officials and 45 young volunteers to discuss fighting corruption in the education sector. A “Pro-Integrity Test” reinforced awareness, supporting broader efforts to strengthen integrity and accountability in education.

Abdul Kalam Technical University (AKTU) will award around 50,000 engineering and management degrees using blockchain technology. The system enhances security, prevents fraud, and streamlines degree issuance, supporting institutional credibility and student trust, and allows secure access to print, and validate degrees.

The Ondo State Government praised the Federal Government’s launch of the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD), calling it a landmark reform against certificate racketeering and academic fraud. NERD digitizes Nigeria’s academic output and standardized credential verification. It also introduces the National Publication Index to enhance academic integrity, and indigenous knowledge governance.

The KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Finance Minister has started a province-wide check to remove ghost workers from the Education Department. Nonexistent or former employees, including teachers who resigned, were dismissed, or died, are still receiving pay. This problem may be costing the department about 1 billion rand (approx. 57.31 million USD) every year, calling for urgent action.

South Africa’s Academy of Science has released a revised 2025 Code of Best Practice in Scholarly Journal Publishing, addressing AI misuse, peer-review ethics, open access, data transparency, and diversity. The code strengthens editorial independence, accountability, and integrity, aiming to curb predatory publishing, plagiarism, and unethical authorship. Stakeholders describe it as a blueprint for credibility and a safeguard for research trust.

The Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad (UP) Board is enhancing efforts against age fraud in High School exams, especially in sports. It plans stronger safeguards, integrating Aadhaar and a 12-digit unique student identifier (Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry - APAAR), part of the National Education Policy 2020's 'One Nation, One Student ID' initiative. This aims to secure registration, ensure data authenticity, and minimize fraud.