5. Civil Society against Corruption (PDF, 293 kb)

114 ANTI-CORRUPTION REFORMS IN BULGARIA
(pupils’ visits to municipality offices, police, court, etc.) which was aimed
at fostering a democratic culture, anticorruption values, etc. through
enhancing the knowledge about the institutions, transparency and good
governance, human and civil rights.
However, efforts to teach anti-corruption to students could be jeopardized
by graft in the very schools and universities. The latter, if they are to
be successful in teaching anti-corruption schools and universities, need
to promote integrity in their administration as well. In 2003, the data
from the Coalition 2000 Corruption Monitoring System and other studies
in the area of higher education challenged the assumption that this
public service tended to be less affected by corruption. University faculty
and administrative staff were ranked at one of the leading positions by
amount of corruption pressure exerted. The proportion of those who
have experienced corruption pressure from university teachers ranges
between 12 and 21%, and as regards administrative staff, between 3
and 12% of all who have had contacts with these groups. Besides the
regular monitoring of corruption conducted by Coalition 2000, which
provides information about the scope of the problem in the area
of higher and secondary education, there have been a number of
specific disclosures regarding bribes solicited at universities. A number
of mechanisms have also been identified for corrupt practices – making
students purchase textbooks and other works authored by particular
faculty members; undue payment for administrative services and undue
examination fees; issuing of false diplomas, etc.
As in other areas of anti-corruption reforms, partnership between
government and civil society would be crucial to tackle these
challenges. These should involve both the Ministry of Education, the
administration of state-run and private universities, parents’ associations,
NGOs, regional educational inspectorates and other institutions. There
have been already been some pilot efforts (eg electronic register of
the regulatory framework of education and educational credits) which
should be developed further.