Bangladesh Reverts Employee Hiring Power to School Boards, Raising Corruption Concerns

Bangladesh's Ministry of Education is reinstating the power to hire non-teaching staff in private schools and colleges to the institutions' managing committees. This decision reverses a previous policy that had transferred this authority to committees led by district administrators. The move is highly criticized as a step backward for transparency and accountability in the education sector. Critics argue that returning hiring power to the committees will inevitably encourage recruitment-related corruption, nepotism, and favoritism, while also increasing political influence within educational institutions. Historically, managing committees have been associated with such malpractices, and their involvement in hiring teachers previously led to detrimental outcomes for the quality of education. While the sector faces challenges like infrastructure and teacher shortages, the primary concern remains the declining quality of education, evidenced by significant learning gaps in core subjects among students. This ultimately contributes to a high rate of graduate unemployment. The article highlights that while teacher recruitment has seen improvements through the Nationalized Teacher Registration and Certification Authority (NTRCA), positions like principals, vice-principals, and non-teaching staff have remained susceptible to irregularities. The previous system, which involved NTRCA for academic appointments and district administrator-led committees for staff, was seen as a positive step towards a more transparent and equitable hiring process. Reverting to the old system for staff recruitment is viewed as a significant setback, potentially re-opening doors to corruption given the political and influential figures often present on these managing committees.