Verification of Academic credentials for recruitment: a municipal response to the breaches of integrity

Abstract

The paper evaluates the local government processes developed for ensuring the authenticity of educational credentials in the Sedibeng District Municipality. Verification of academic credentials forms part of the internal control in a legitimate institution. The paper finds that academic fraud is on the increase across the world, developing and developing countries alike, and it is a threat to the intellectual integrity on which the advancement of knowledge depends. globally, a set of laws and regulations have been established to tackle the rise in fake qualifications. However, such measures are inadequate and unreliable, and perpetrators are often detected after a significant number of years. The paper points out that advances in technological communication have facilitated the growth of academic fraud by electronic means. As a result it drives the public sector recruitment process making it impracticable for recruitment officers to closely inspect individual applications in detail. the paper observes that support staff posed minor risks compared to senior and middle managers, which is a costly threat to societies, to their efficient operation and to public trust in the reliability and security of their institutions. The paper calls for a system that would mitigate the risk of educational fraud often experienced in the public sector. It suggests that means be devised to adopt responsive and enhanced efficient processes for dealing with breaches of integrity.