KUWAIT CITY, March 18: Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr Moudhi Al-Humoud has warned against dealing with violations or errors in educational institutes leniently, adding such an attitude transforms into a destructive force instead of productivity, reports Al-Qabas daily.

In a speech at a seminar organized by Kuwait Transparency Society (KTS), in cooperation with Terry’s Organization for Achieving Integrity, Al-Humoud said educational institutes play a significant role in consolidating the values of integrity and transparency to combat corruption. She emphasised the relevant role the educational system plays in spreading positive values on rational governance and integrity.
Meanwhile, the head of Kuwait Transparency Society Salah Al-Ghazali described Kuwait as the “most corrupt country in the Gulf region” adding that the National Assembly is a culprit in corruption and a partner in reform. He stressed that Kuwait, regardless of its comparatively stable environment, has a high rate of corruption, in the wake of the government signing the United Nations Agreement to Combat Corruption, which has been ratified by the parliament but not enacted so far.

Al-Ghazali called for ‘integrity’ to be incorporated as a subject in the school curricula to solidify the role of education in guarding against corruption in our society. Meanwhile in a unrelated development, the administration of the Australian College of Kuwait (ACK) has vowed to provide an environment conducive to learning and support the students after a number of Kuwaiti students held a protest Wednesday against the system of graduation from the college, reports Al-Watan Arabic daily quoting sources.

Affirming that the administration will soon initiate dialogue with the students to address their problems, sources said the college has realized the enormous challenges the students are currently facing, especially those who enroll in degree programs after completing diploma courses in ACK. Sources confirmed Dean of Academic Affairs Professor Abel Hassan has been instructed to look into the complaints, particularly the marking system in a marketing course.

Sources added steps are currently being taken to discuss the issue with the partners of the college in Australia, since the entire curriculum and certificates are based on this partnership. Sources revealed the administration is studying the suggestions of the students, such as offering certain sets of courses in one semester.

However, sources said the attendance in lectures and extracurricular activities is only 39 percent, while the average is supposed to be 80 percent, and the passing rate is 61 percent which, they clarified, is acceptable. Sources stated the administration has urged the students to attend their classes to improve their academic performance.