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Today’s higher education legal landscape in the USA is characterised by a wave of issues, including inflated employment rates for recent graduates, inflated starting salaries, as is the case with law schools and business schools, and the employment formula linked to federal grants and loans recipients, as is the case with for-profits. This wave will bring more lawsuits.

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.

Zimbabwean police arrested the Higher Education, Science and Technology Minister and his deputy on Wednesday for allegedly misappropriating around US$450,000 from a manpower development fund that finances students, among other activities. The politicians were questioned and released. Days before his arrest the minister – a former politics professor at the University of Zimbabwe and researcher at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, which accused him of embezzling research funds – issued a statement denying any wrongdoing.

The national education minister has stated that a number of measures will be put in place in order to fight fraud during the next baccalaureate test cycle, including securing the online site of the National Examinations and Competitive Examination Office (ONEC), and preparing back-up questions. The minister emphasised the need to implement technical measures in order to adapt to developments in information technology and communication and respond to the challenges that arise as a result.

Following the suspension of student loans and the imposition of a week-long ultimatum, 15 universities in Tanzania have responded to a ministerial directive to pay back loans issued to them for thousands of so-called ‘ghost’ students. The directive was issued after a recent verification exercise revealed that about 2,192 students receiving loans at 31 universities may not even exist. The universities were given seven days to recover and return the money, estimated to be over TZS3.8 billion (US$1.7 million).

Tanzania’s universities is having trouble with ghosts. The government has suspended student loans worth TZS3.2 billion (US$1.5 million), affecting around 2000 students. This came after a routine verification exercise revealed that some who signed up for loans may not even exist. In a country of more than 100 000 registered tertiary students, 2000 “ghosts” may not seem like a big problem. But when the loan money is being misspent, deliberately or because of poor administration, the entire higher education system is affected, and ultimately the country.

A total of 4,827 'ghost' pupils have been identified in Sengerema and Buchosa districts following a special audit. According to the Sengerema District Commissioner a total of 41 head teachers have been suspended in connection to the investigation. 710 of the pupils come from Sengerema district while 4,117 pupils were identified from Buchosa. The Sengerema District Education officer said his office will conduct frequent inspections to identify ghost students.

Tanzania has suspended student loans amounting to TZS3.2 billion (US$1.5 million) affecting over 2,000 students, some of whom are believed to be non-existent as they failed to show up during a verification exercise. Media reports said the two-month-long exercise carried out twice was to confirm that the students who were benefiting through the Tanzania’s Higher Education Students’ Loans Board, or HESLB, at various institutions of higher learning actually existed and were legitimate students.

The Rukwa Region has identified 2,408 students from public primary and secondary schools as ghost students following the recent verifications. The Rukwa Region Commissioner (RC), briefed the Prime Minister from the regional development reports in Namanyere Town , Nkasi District. The premier was further told that Rukwa Region continued to put into action the directives of the President by undertaking thorough verification of phantom students in all public primary and secondary schools in the region.

The Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities (SSANU) has accused Pro-Chancellors and Vice Chancellors of Nigerian universities of corruption and running the nation’s ivory tower aground through fraudulent activities, diversion of funds and awarding shady contracts. Rising from its National Executive Council meeting, the Union asked the President to beam his anti-corruption searchlight on the Vice Chancellors and the governing council of the universities if the anti-corruption battle is to succeed.