Amin* quit school in the ninth grade. He is now 20 and unemployed. He spent the last few years working in coffee shops until a friend of his suggested he buy a high school certificate from a private school to help him find a job.
Dropout rates have been on the rise in recent years, according to the Ministry of Education (MoE). Director-General of Planning and Information Systems at the MoE, Bouzid Nusairi said 100,000 elementary, middle and high school students drop out every year.
Amin* quit school in the ninth grade. He is now 20 and unemployed. He spent the last few years working in coffee shops until a friend of his suggested he buy a high school certificate from a private school to help him find a job.
Dropout rates have been on the rise in recent years, according to the Ministry of Education (MoE). Director-General of Planning and Information Systems at the MoE, Bouzid Nusairi said 100,000 elementary, middle and high school students drop out every year.
Middle school dropout rates rose following the revolution to 10.5 percent in 2013 up from 6.5 percent in 1995, according to Hadiya Bahloul, who presented his research at a seminar at the governmental Center for Economic and Social Studies and Research.
Some of these dropouts turn to crime, emigrate or get pulled into extremism. Others seek employment at any cost, even it means buying school certificates, as Amin’s did. This tendency has spread widely across the country amid silent or paralyzed educational authorities.
Certificates hard to earn – easier to buy or forge
Having a high school certificate in Tunisia very often helps job seekers join the labour market given the importance and difficulty in earning it. Only 34 percent out of the 135,612 high school students in both scientific and literary disciplines passed the high school exams in 2016.
After Amin purchased a high school certificate, he found a job as a guard in a handling company where he earned US$ 150 per month. He then worked as an employee for an insurance company in Diwan Ezzet for $US 300 a month, which equals a teacher’s salary.
Amin’s case is not unique by any means. In addition to the buying certificates, another problem is forged certificates made with Photoshop. In 2015, the Ministry for Vocational Training and Employment (MoVTE) disclosed a complete network engaged in forgery of university and school certificates, involving government officials, administrative staff and senior officers. The MoVTE estimated that thousands of job applicants bought or produced fake certificates.
Bought certificates are the most successful and safe tool because forged certificates do not usually have corresponding reference numbers in MoE’s archives, which facilitates their verification and disclosure. Certificate purchases are often arranged at private schools.
The deterioration of public education
Amani, 22, could not find a job when she dropped out of school in the 10th grade. Based on her relative’s advice, she bought a high school certificate through a private school for TND 700 (US$ 300).
Amani then decided to join a private vocational institute. To be admitted, Amani was required to submit a copy of her certificate to the Tunis Department of Education (TDoE), a procedure taken care of by Amani’s relative, who met with a TDoE official responsible for providing needed facilitation against an agreed sum of money.
The prices of high school certificates differ from one private school to another, ranging between TND 600 and 800 (US$ 300-400). Between Tunisia’s independence in 1956 and the 1970s, public school education was the main pillar of the educational system in the country. Then, with the liberal trend in the country following the failure of the socialist trend, private institutes started to increase in number. MoE’s recent statistics say there are 97 private elementary schools and 287 private middle schools across the country.
“The MoE carries out administrative and financial inspections in coordination with MoE’s regional representatives based on submitted complaints,” says Adel Emera, MoE’s director of Private and Public Middle and Secondary School Education.
“Once the forgery of a school certificate by a private school in Hammamet was discovered, which led to the permanent closure of the school.”
“The TDoE has assigned three inspectors, including me, to inspect private schools and supervise the progress of classes and examinations, as well as all administrative matters,” says Zaqli, TDoE’s head of Private Education Affairs. “We detected some violations where some private schools promoted ineligible students.”
*Names of some individuals have been changed.
by Kholoud Al-Loaty
