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The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) is in talks with HRD Ministry, CBSE, AICTE, Medical Council of India (MCI) and other educational bodies to introduce course content on corruption and ethics to make the students aware of the scourge and its consequences. If implemented, students in schools and colleges will soon be imparted lessons on the menace of corruption, its debilitating impact on socio-economic sphere and ways of tackling it.

Most schools in the country cannot account for books bought since introduction of free education in 2003, a confidential report by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has revealed. The report has poked holes in the storage of textbooks in public schools noting that it is hard to establish the number of books purchased by most schools. It notes that despite the government releasing funds to schools to construct book storage facilities, most schools have not done so. According to the report, some schools bought one wooden cupboard which is maintained in the offices of head teachers or their deputies.

A new report has unearthed massive irregularities in the procurement of textbooks for public schools, with head teachers playing a key role in the racket. The fraud ranges from forged signatures, delivery of phantom books, overpricing and single-sourcing of suppliers by instructional materials selection committees at the school level. Education Cabinet Secretary recently said that though the government allocated Sh10 billion for books in the last three years, most schools did not have the materials. He estimated that the pupil-to-book ratio stood at 5:1 in primary schools.

The Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Education has launched a code of conduct for public school teachers across the country. The director for communications at the Ministry of Education said the code of conduct is intended to enable teachers conduct themselves in the classroom as well as eliminate corporal punishment in schools.
The Ministry of Education has also informed the public that the police have been asked to arrest anyone caught selling textbooks and other school materials being distributed to schools.

Following last month’s report by Transparency International, which ranked Rwanda as the fourth least corrupt country in Africa, The New Times spoke to the country’s Chief Ombudsman to make sense of current efforts against corruption. She says Rwanda can do more to fight corruption, starting by educating those who are still young by including values of integrity on the curriculum for primary schools. Teaching the right values to young people is key in fighting against corruption and it is in line with the country’s anti-graft policy.

Education Cabinet Secretary has described the auditing system used in Kenyan schools as a “big joke” and a great let-down and accused auditors of colluding with headteachers to give favourable reports even when money has been lost. He also decried the inappropriate use of free learning cash and the distribution of government-purchased books in schools and described the system of assessing the performance of teachers as still substandard.

The report focuses on the development of teaching materials to raise awareness among students of the problem of corruption in schools in Cameroon, including intimidation and harassment. The materials are varied and include whistle-blowing boxes.