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Zimbabwe is in the process of developing new medical research legislation aimed at modernizing its approach to health research. This initiative seeks to address concerns such as outdated laws, lack of data transparency, and dependence on foreign funding. By fostering local research initiatives and collaborations between academia and industry, Zimbabwe aims to enhance its capacity for medical research and innovation, aligning with national priorities and advancing towards its Vision 2030 goals.

A new study highlights the necessity of training Research Ethics Committees (RECs) in Sub-Saharan Africa to manage the ethical and legal complexities inherent in data-intense research, particularly concerning data protection and sharing. Findings reveal a lack of awareness among REC members regarding existing laws at the national level, possibly resulting in research data crossing borders without appropriate agreements or permits. Establishing transparent and standardized data governance could foster shared ethical values and ensure responsible big data research practices across the subcontinent.

A survey of 1,054 students in the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia found that 92% of students had some knowledge of academic integrity issues, from how to avoid plagiarism, to the consequences of cheating, to where to get help with references. The majority had heard about these issues from a member of the academic staff, showing a promising trend towards open communication within institutions about academic integrity. There were differences between male and female respondents, with male students being more aware of the workshops offered by their university while female students were more familiar with the concept of avoiding plagiarism. The survey also highlights the importance of academic integrity and provides useful information for educators.

An audit report reveals the State Educational Loan Fund has been plagued by violations and corruption since 1997 when it began granting loans to students pursuing Higher education abroad. The main finding of the investigation is that 90 percent of the loans were granted to high-level officials, their children, and those who had access to confidential information. There was no transparency or fair competition in the allocation of loans.

The New York City Department of Education has blocked access to ChatGPT on its networks and devices over fears that the AI tool will harm students’ education. Many teachers say software like ChatGPT essentially makes it impossible to test students’ ability to write essays at home. Although tools to detect AI-generated writing already exist, it’s unclear how accurate they will be, or if students can outwit them with simple alterations to AI-generated text.

New Ontario legislation will ban non-disclosure agreements so professors cannot hide a history of sexual misconduct when applying to other universities or colleges. It will give schools rights to fire staff when they are found to have abused a student – and stop them from being rehired.

In February, Columbia Mathematics Professor questioned the Ivy League school’s rise in rankings in the U.S. News & World Report from 18th place, on its debut in 1988, to 2nd place in 2021. In response, Columbia University will refrain from submitting data for consideration in the publication’s 2022, and it will start participating in the Common Data Set Initiative, a collaborative effort among data providers in the higher education community and publishers to provide accurate information to students seeking information on institutions of higher education.

Six Iranian and Azerbaijani nationals have been arrested for stealing and selling questions and answers from the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) that foreign students take for admission to universities in the United States and Turkey. The suspects allegedly charged the “buyers” between $2,000 and $3,000 for the questions provided in their network called “quarantine houses”. While searching the addresses where the suspects were arrested, Turkish police found SAT admission papers, official test question books and a host of digital evidence.

Cameroon’s Minister of Higher Education revealed that the private American University in Central Africa, recruiting students for its programmes is a clandestine university. In 2020, the Minister ordered the African Regional Training Centre for Labour Administration, the Pan African Institute for Development and the Bamenda University Institute of Science and Technology to desist from awarding Bachelor’s degrees and suspend all Master's and Doctorate programmes for non-compliance with the conditions of the accreditation granted to them.

In 2018 the Higher Education, Science and Innovation Department had successfully prosecuted 40 fake institutes. However, by the end of 2021, the number of institutions offering fake bachelor’s and doctoral degrees has increased. During an awareness campaign on bogus colleges, officials will address the dissemination of information related to these higher education organisations.