The Deputy Country Director for International Governance Institute, IGI, Focal Integrity Team for Cameroon (FITCAM) has said that corruption is a very sensitive ill in the educational sector considering that the sector itself is a very sensitive area in any country because of the new human potentials it has to develop.
Stephen Nkem Asek, made the statement recently in Buea, in a press briefing that followed the official opening of a four day training seminar and workshops for the University of Buea Academic staff and sub committees on Anti corruption.

Answering questions on why the choice of the University of Buea, Stephen Asek opined that the University of Buea being an academic institution where minds and intellectual capacities are build, it was therefore wise to focus on training of the anti corruption sub committee and the academic staff of UB.

"The anti corruption sub committees as well as academic staff are the right target group for us to enhance their capacities and sufficiently educate them to carry out their mandated duties effectively", Asek said.

The IGI deputy Country Director however stated that the work of his organisation in Cameroon is not only limited to the Educational sector. The sector has been given the first place priority because of its role it plays in building capacities for the future people who will take over the public service administration and business in the country.

Meanwhile in his welcome speech, the IGI Country deputy Director indicated the rationale for the training of the academic staff as well as the sub committee for the fight against corruption at the University of Buea is to provide access to training tools and techniques that will help tackle the demand and supply of corruption within the University by complimenting the on going efforts of UB administrators to hinder the growth spread of corruption and poor administration in Cameroon.

By the end of the training, it is hoped that a suitable strategy for the University to promote ethical standards of behaviors and good management practices while anticipating that training of this magnitude with other higher institutions in Cameroon will make a significant impact on the way Cameroonians regard their public institutions of higher learning.

Opening the training seminar, the Social and Cultural Adviser at the South West Governor's office, Edwin Nkenya Ngwana who represented the Governor Eyeya Zanga remarked that the fight against corruption and promotion of ethics within the educational institutions in Cameroon constitute part of the broader strategy by government to enhance the performance of public service institutions in the country.

The government official said the desire of the government is to encourage the building of a public service system where the principles of transparency, accountability, equality and objectivity are enabled to sufficiently anchor the fundamental frameworks on which the budding democracy can thrive.
The International Governance Institute, IGI is a UK based charity organization which seeks to promote ethical standards in the management of public affairs across the globe. IGI is represented in 30 countries with its objective to build an open society where both leaders and ordinary people are ready to defend the truth, uphold and denounce any fraudulent behavior.