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With a mandate to reform a severely flawed education system that produced university graduates who had paid for – rather than studied for – their grades, Cambodia’s Education Minister went to extreme measures to clean up corruption and bribery in Cambodia’s national university entrance exam.

Asia Pacific: The first ever International Youth Camp on youth Empowerment for Transparency and Integrity (yETI) in Angkor, Cambodia, brought together youths from a number of asian countries, to learn and exchange on the negative impact of corruption in their countries and across the region, and brainstorm how they can work together to combat the scourge

33 youths from South-East Asia gathered in January at the first ever International Youth Camp on Youth Empowerment for Transparency and Integrity (YETI) in Cambodia, to learn and exchange on the negative impact of corruption in their countries and across the region, and brainstorm how they could combat the scourge together. The event sought to enhance the young participants’ sense of belonging to a community, inspire them to stand up to corruption and equip them with the tools to do so.

Corruption, funding shortages and an obsession with profit are plaguing the quality of university education in Cambodia, students say, driving them overseas in search of masters and PhD programmes.

New teachers often face a many-month delay before they receive their salaries. Teachers sometimes supplement their income with a second job. This can affect their own attendance at school, and can put pressure on the amount of time they have to prepare their lessons. A 2007 report by the Cambodian NGO Education Partnership (NEP) reveals education costs for each child averaged $108 annually, or 9 percent of each family's annual income. "When you include informal and formal school costs, and private classes and snacks, many students are paying $2.50 every day," the education and capacity-building officer for the NGO Education Partnership (NEP), told IRIN. The inability to pay informal fees was the most common reason parents gave for their children dropping out, the report stated.