Ministry of Education cancels 9th grade exams due to fraud in Zambézia

The Ministry of Education and Culture has decided to cancel the final exams for the 9th grade due to evidence of fraud in the process. This information was given to “Carta” this morning by students in this grade, who were excused from taking the exams at their schools, a process that began last Monday.

In a press conference held this morning, the Spokesperson for the Ministry of Education and Culture, Silvestre Dava, confirmed the information, revealing that the decision covers exams in four subjects, namely Physics, Chemistry, English, and History.

According to Dava, the Ministry of Education and Culture detected the violation of the envelopes containing the exam papers in the district of Milange, Zambézia province. He states that the exams were scheduled for the 26th and 27th of this month, Wednesday and Thursday respectively, but will now take place on December 8th and 9th.

The Ministry of Education and Culture assures that inspection teams at the provincial, district, and central levels are on the ground investigating the details of the case and guarantees that there will be disciplinary and criminal accountability for the offenders. The spokesperson reminds that the violation of confidentiality is a crime under the General Statute of State Employees and Agents.

Despite allegations of exam leaks made by some entities, such as the National Association of Teachers, Silvestre Dava affirms that there was no prior leak of the exams, particularly in Mathematics. He explained that the exam only began circulating after its official start, therefore there was no fraud.

Regarding the costs of producing the cancelled exams and the new ones that will have to be printed, the Ministry of Education and Culture assures that the data will be presented in the final report of the exam process, not providing any figures at this stage.

When questioned about the reason for the nationwide cancellation, given that the fraud was identified in only one district, Silvestre Dava justified it by stating that any leak prior to the exam compromises the integrity of the test throughout the country, making its partial application impossible.

It should be noted that this is not the first time the Government has cancelled the final secondary school exams due to fraud, a practice that began almost 20 years ago. However, education authorities reiterate that the entire exam process—from the preparation of the tests to the publication of the results—is accompanied by continuous monitoring mechanisms to prevent further irregularities. It is important to highlight that the Chemistry and English exams will be held on December 8th, and the Physics and History exams on December 9th.