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With each teacher taking an average of 6.6 sick days per year, the non-replacement of absent teachers is a source of tension with parents. In the public sector, substitute teachers cover 97% of long-term absences at the secondary level. This rate falls to 38% for shorter absences. However, when it comes to replacing teachers, be it for longer or shorter periods, the private education system is more efficient than the public sector.

For the past three years, the Rwanda Education Board (REB) has not ranked schools when releasing results of national examinations. Their reason is simple – ranking increases unnecessary pressure and competition in schools, which promotes malpractices. Surprisingly, in the just released national examinations for primary and ordinary level, an increase in exam malpractices was spotted. In Primary Six alone, cases rose by an eye watering 80.4 per cent to 455, up from 89 reported cases in 2014.

The consequences of teacher absenteeism are dramatic for the quality of teaching, and Uganda has taken drastic measures to combat the problem. The report brings together a researcher from UNESCO's Education for All Global Monitoring Report and a doctor in Sociology and Education Policy from the ENS in Abidjan.

Mexico's director of research talks about how to eliminate corruption in education in Mexico. He discusses several corruption issues in the country such as teacher absenteeism and emphasizes strategies to combat the corruption. To do so, he highlights the importance of community participation and standardized testing.