Reflections on corruption in university education in Mozambique

Paulo Vilanculo"

Universities constitute one of the main pillars of the development of any society. University corruption manifests itself in various ways. Among them are psychological and sexual harassment, the sale of grades, illicit fees for student approval, plagiarism of scientific work, nepotism in the hiring of teachers and managers, manipulation of academic competitions, and the misappropriation of resources intended for research. In the university context, this phenomenon produces serious impacts, as it compromises the training of the human capital responsible for the country's future. When corruption takes root in higher education, the mission of producing knowledge and training competent citizens is profoundly compromised. Instead of being spaces of merit, ethics, and innovation, some institutions become environments where favoritism, academic fraud, influence peddling, and the improper commercialization of educational services prevail. The result is a progressive degradation of the quality of education and a loss of public confidence in higher education in Mozambique. It is from this perspective that the analysis of university corruption becomes indispensable for understanding the repercussions of the decline in the quality of education in Mozambique.

In Mozambique, where higher education has experienced significant expansion in recent decades, the quality of education has become one of the main indicators of the credibility and social relevance of university institutions. The university plays a strategic role in the formation of human capital and in the production of knowledge indispensable to the development of any nation. The quality of university education constitutes one of the main pillars for the sustainable development of a nation, insofar as it determines the capacity of higher education institutions to train technically competent, ethically responsible, and socially committed professionals. The quality of education refers to the degree to which the educational process develops knowledge, skills, abilities, values, and attitudes that allow students to act competently, ethically, and critically in society and in the world of work.The quality of education depends not only on curricula or infrastructure, but above all on the integrity of its processes, the competence of its professionals, and the ethical commitment of all those involved. It presupposes meaningful learning, the development of technical skills, critical thinking, ethical responsibility, and a commitment to solving societal problems.

Corruption is no longer just an administrative problem; it is now directly impacting the quality of education, compromising the credibility of diplomas, the competence of graduates, and the ability of universities to meet Mozambique's development needs.One of the most worrying aspects of the quality of university education is the corruption that manifests itself in allegations of sexual harassment. In these circumstances, some students who refuse such practices may face successive failures, biased evaluations, or other forms of retaliation, compromising their academic performance, their psychological health, and, in many cases, leading to them dropping out of their studies.The sale of grades is one of the most destructive manifestations of university corruption, where a student obtains approval through payment or influence, breaking the principle of merit-based assessment. Even more worrying is academic plagiarism, both by students and by some teachers and researchers. The improper reproduction of scientific work compromises knowledge production and weakens the culture of research. UNESCO (2021) points out that academic integrity should be an essential element of the quality of higher education, requiring intellectual honesty, transparency, and respect for scientific principles.

In Mozambique, the expansion of higher education has always been accompanied by challenges related to institutional oversight and quality assurance.A worrying manifestation of the degradation of educational quality also occurs when students are subjected to administrative and pedagogical inertia during the final stages of their courses. In some contexts, situations have been reported in which unjustified delays in the supervision of theses, the scheduling of defenses, or the issuing of certificates have been associated with abusive power dynamics, including allegations of harassment, blackmail, or undue demands by some supervisors or academic officials. When these behaviors occur, students remain stagnant for months or even years, unable to formally complete their education, despite having already fulfilled the essential academic requirements. In addition to financial and emotional losses, such delays compromise access to employment, the continuation of studies, and confidence in higher education institutions.Quality education is only achieved when evaluation, scientific supervision, research, and university management are guided by merit, ethics, and academic autonomy, and not by private interests or power relations. Impunity is one of the main factors that favor the continuation of these corrupt practices.

On the other hand, the quality of education at a university is intrinsically linked to the quality of its faculty, which is why recruitment and academic progression processes should be guided by the principles of merit, scientific competence, and professional integrity. One of the factors that compromises the quality of education is nepotism. However, when access to teaching becomes conditioned by relationships of affinity, clientelism, favoritism, or political influence, to the detriment of academic ability, an institutional culture is established that weakens university excellence. When corruption replaces merit, the university loses its social function and compromises the future of the country. Max Weber (1978) argues that modern bureaucracy should be based on rational and meritocratic criteria, in which positions are assigned based on technical competence and professional qualifications. When the university environment ceases to encourage merit and begins to foster relationships of dependence and favoritism, in which management, teaching, or research positions are filled based on family or friendship criteria, to the detriment of professional competence, the institutional capacity to promote innovation, quality research, and good academic management is reduced.

Another contradiction observed in the education system lies in the difference in perception between parts of private secondary education and parts of private higher education. While many private secondary schools seek to assert themselves through the quality of their teaching, closer pedagogical support, small class sizes, and academic results that reinforce their reputation, some private higher education institutions have been criticized for prioritizing deliberate massification as a sustainability strategy, without this growth always being accompanied by qualified teachers, research, infrastructure, laboratories, libraries, and quality assurance mechanisms. Although this criticism is not generalized, as there are private higher education institutions that maintain less favorable quality standards...While accreditation and external evaluation mechanisms exist, their effectiveness depends on the independence of regulatory bodies, the transparency of processes, and the effective accountability of offenders.When the logic of massification prevails without academic rigor, there is a risk of transforming the university into a predominantly certifying entity, to the detriment of its function of producing knowledge and training competent professionals. For Harvey and Green (1993), university quality is measured by the ability to transform the student through consistent teaching, learning and assessment processes, and not just by increasing the number of enrollments or graduates.Society receives doctors with insufficient training, engineers incapable of guaranteeing infrastructure safety, teachers lacking pedagogical skills, lawyers ill-prepared to defend justice, and managers without technical competence. More than training graduates, masters, and doctoral degree holders, universities have the responsibility of forming upright citizens, capable of putting knowledge at the service of national development.

In this vein, university corruption can be understood as a reflection of a permissive institutional culture, where unethical practices are gradually normalized. The abandonment of all evils leads to the replacement of institutional rationality with private interests, compromising the efficiency and legitimacy of organizations. This effort involves strengthening audit mechanisms, transparently digitizing academic processes, protecting whistleblowers, valuing professional ethics, providing continuous training for faculty, and rigorously applying disciplinary sanctions whenever illicit practices are identified.Jacques Derrida's work, *L'Université sans condition* (The University Without Condition, 2001), offers a solid framework for discussing the mission of the university. Derrida argues that the university must preserve its intellectual autonomy and unconditional commitment to truth, resisting political, economic, and ideological pressures. These ideas strengthen the critique of practices that compromise the quality of education.Improving the quality of education requires a systematic fight against university corruption. Combating university corruption is not merely an administrative requirement; it is an indispensable condition for ensuring that higher education continues to be an instrument of progress, social justice, and sustainable development. It is therefore essential to consolidate independent quality assessment systems, promote transparent public tenders, and encourage an institutional culture based on responsibility and accountability.

2025/12/3