This Anti-Corruption Helpdesk brief was produced in response to a query from the European Commission. The Anti-Corruption Helpdesk is operated by Transparency International and funded by the European Union.
Query
Can you please provide an overview of corruption in the education sector in Bangladesh?
Content
1. Corruption in the education sector: causes, forms and impacts
2. Forms of corruption in the education sector in Bangladesh
3. Governmental and non-governmental initiatives to fight corruption in education
Summary
The education sector is generally considered to be particularly prone to corruption, due to the size of education budgets and the complex administrative layers that exist between central government and the school level. Parents can often be manipulated and tolerate corruption as they strive to provide the best educational opportunities for their children.
In Bangladesh, the main forms of corruption identified in the education sector include more obvious forms such as bribery in admissions and in the disbursement of stipends; nepotism in the recruitment of teachers; and corruption in procurement. Less obvious forms include teacher absenteeism; misuse of private tuition by teachers; and sexual exploitation in schools and universities.
Bangladesh has been recognised internationally for progress made in achieving almost universal access to primary education and attaining gender equity at the primary and secondary education levels. Governmental efforts in the area of governance have led to improvements in the recruitment of teachers and school management. Notable non-governmental anti-corruption initiatives in the sector include TI-Bangladesh’s Integrity Pledge which aims to promote people’s participation in planning, budgeting, implementation and monitoring in schools.
Authors
Suzanne Mulcahy PhD, Transparency International, [email protected]Reviewers
Iftekhar Zaman, Transparency International-BangladeshCasey Kelso, Transparency International-SecretariatDate
21/04/2015
