EDUCATION REFORM PROGRAM

Conference on Transparency, Ethics, and Anti-Corruption Measures in Education

SUMMARY

Corruption seems to be leaving its furthest-reaching consequences when it happens in education, because, once perceived by the students, it may as well become accepted as normal and legitimate behaviour. Corruption in education is "systemic use of public service for personal benefit which reflects on the access, quality and equity in education." (Institute for Educational Planning, UNESCO)

Western Balkan countries have all embarked on the process of decentralizing their educational systems. By the number of the employed and its ratio in the public budget, educational systems are most often the largest public administration sector. If the system is corrupted, its decentralization may lead to further spreading of corruption, thus making the struggle against this dangerous social phenomenon much harder.

The first step in fighting corruption is to see what forms it takes in a particular educational system. The process of self-regulation should ensue, by developing he ethical code for schools and the educational system as a whole, as well as by establishing and respecting the principle of transparency in all processes. Furthermore, it is necessary to develop such culture at all educational levels whose rules would apply to all, because this is the underlying principle of all functional democracies.

These have been the main topics presented by IIEP-UNESCO experts and discussed about among the participants from Montengro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Kosovo and Serbia, at the conference "Ethics, transparency and anti-corruption measures in education", which took place on October 22 – 25, 2006, in Montenegro.