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100 Diagnosing Corruption in Ethiopia
understood to include capacity constraints, budget limits, the multiplicity
of languages in which books must be printed, 15 and frequent changes to
the curriculum.
Overbilling by suppliers—risk: low. Overbilling occurs when a supplier
invoices for an amount that is higher than that stipulated in the contract
or when the same amount is invoiced twice. Corruption occurs through
the act of overbilling, whether or not the invoice is subsequently paid as
requested. If such payment is made, it suggests either incompetence, or
collusion, on the part of the officer responsible for procurement. Given
the relatively sound nature of account controls in Ethiopia, the risk of this
form of corrupt practice is considered to be low.
Extortion of facilitation payments to ensure settlement of invoices—risk: low.
This form of corruption relates to suppliers being denied payments to
which they are entitled unless they first pay a kickback to an official. It is
a common practice in some other countries in the region. Survey
responses did not indicate this to be a significant problem in the education
sector in Ethiopia, though the hidden nature of such payments
makes any such assessment uncertain. More broadly, however, there was
a suggestion that a supplier may be inclined to express gratitude to a client
through a small gift, but the amounts involved would be small and
unlikely to be in the form of a crude cash payment.
Extortion of funds to provide access to supplies or equipment intended for
all—risk: low. This corrupt practice, common in many developing countries,
typically involves the charging for the use of textbooks that are
supposed to be freely available. Survey responses suggested that this is not
a significant problem in schools in Ethiopia. Respondents indicated that
textbooks are normally free, or occasionally rented, while the high level
of involvement of PTAs in schools has resulted in a widespread awareness
of free services to which pupils are entitled.
Leakage of supplies or equipment during distribution—risk: low. Although
this form of corruption is a theoretical possibility because of the low level
of monitoring and controls in place in some woredas, the respondents did
not highlight this risk. Secondary sources do, however, suggest a possible
problem—one recent study concluding that even the modest (and at
times inadequate) provision made for teaching and learning materials do
not always reach the schools as intended.