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The Education Cabinet Secretary has vowed to ensure that people using fake university degree papers are unearthed. Addressing principals at All Saints Cathedral Anglican in Nairobi, the education CS lashed out at those who want to assume leadership roles by irregularly acquiring academic qualifications, saying the ministry will rein in on academic miscreants in an effort to promote integrity. He urged the principals to be at the forefront in instilling virtues and challenged them to take responsibility for failures in their institutions.

The University of Devonshire, the University of Wexford and the University of Palmers Green are among the trading names of the University Degree Programme, set up with websites looking like they were licensed universities. Thankfully, these fake institutions have all long since been shut down, though the qualifications they issued may still be in use. New fake universities appear all the time. The process to set up a fake university can be easy. Continued alertness and vigilance is needed to preserve academic integrity. We need to stop fake universities trading on commodities that they’re not licensed to award.

As Pakistan's Election Commission began its first hearings into parliamentarians' fake degrees last week some feared the scandal had been pushed out of the limelight by the devastating floods. Nonetheless, the degree debacle is straining the credibility of the country's higher education and election systems.