The crisis of fraudulent qualifications

THE persistent challenge of falsified or misrepresented qualifications in South Africa exposes serious shortcomings in recruitment and appointment processes. Although the scale of the problem is difficult to quantify, it is considered to be reaching “pandemic” levels, particularly in the public sector.

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The government introduced the National Qualifications Framework Amendment Act in 2019, making it a criminal offence to misrepresent qualifications, punishable by up to five years in prison. Yet, the issue persists, undermining trust and capability in organisations.

Numerous individuals have pretended to be qualified for high-profile positions, including top executives and directors of parastatals, with some major companies also affected. Once unsuitable people occupy positions of responsibility, their removal is challenging, and their performance rarely improves due to a lack of foundational skills.

Their incompetence can severely affect institutions, leading to poor decisions and financial losses, as seen with the SABC, which suffered due to unqualified executives.

Unqualified personnel in municipalities often hire expensive consultants, while teachers with fraudulent credentials compromise the quality of education, depriving children of opportunities. Unscrupulous individuals have masqueraded as medical doctors, putting lives at risk, and important infrastructure projects have collapsed due to fake engineers.

Loopholes in the system

As a researcher and practitioner of public sector reforms, I argue that to deter qualifications fraud, human

resource management in the public sector must be professional. South Africa can learn from the private sector and other governments.