Exam cheats to be jailed 9 years

Individuals caught leaking public examination question papers could now face up to nine years in prison, while schools involved in the offence risk deregistration and permanent closure, under tough new proposals aimed at curbing academic fraud in Zimbabwe.

These stringent measures are outlined in the Zimbabwe School Examination Amendment Bill, approved by Cabinet this week. The Bill seeks to close loopholes in the current education system and enhance the integrity of national examinations administered by the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC).

Speaking at a post-Cabinet media briefing in Harare on Tuesday, Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Dr Jenfan Muswere, said the Bill responds to a growing wave of exam malpractices that have plagued the education sector in recent years.

"Cabinet considered and approved the Zimbabwe School Examination Amendment Bill," said Dr Muswere. "The decision to amend the ZIMSEC Act [Chapter 25:18] is to address challenges obtaining in the education sector, particularly examination leakages, registration anomalies, and fraudulent practices."

Dr Muswere added that the Bill would streamline the functions of the ZIMSEC Board, enhance its operational capacity, and introduce harsher penalties for offenders. "More critically, the Bill eliminates leakages across all examination centres," he said.

Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Torerai Moyo, echoed these sentiments, noting that previous penalties had proven too lenient to deter would-be offenders.

"We have had serious cases of leakages, especially in 2022, where more than five O-Level question papers were compromised," Minister Moyo said. "The current penalties are insufficient. We are proposing imprisonment of up to nine years for individuals who leak just one examination paper."

Minister Moyo also revealed that public input would be sought in determining the final penalties, as per Section 141 of the Constitution.

The Bill targets a broad range of examination-related offences, including impersonation - where one individual writes an exam on behalf of another. Offenders found guilty of such acts will also face custodial sentences.

Schools, especially unregistered centres, are also under scrutiny. "We are going to penalise schools involved in these practices, whether they are registered or not," Moyo said. "Non-compliant centres will be deregistered and shut down."

Under the existing law, culprits faced up to one year in jail, though most were handed community service sentences. The new legislation aims to send a stronger message that academic dishonesty will not be tolerated.

The Bill now awaits public consultations and parliamentary debate before it can be enacted into law.