Ministry of Higher Education has established a regulation to issue a fine of MVR 5,000 to individuals studying at a higher education centre if they hand in assignments completed by others.
Parliament passed the regulation on dealing with complaints regarding higher education centres in April last year. The regulation states that if students allow others to complete their assignments, they will be issued a MVR 5,000 fine and will be liable for any other penalties levied by the higher education centre. The centre is also required to submit a report on the incident to the higher education ministry within three days.
The regulation further states that higher education centres will be fined MVR 10,000 if they violate the Constitution of the Maldives and undermine the religious harmony in the country. The centres will also be required to penalise the workers involved in committing the offense and submit a report to the higher education ministry within 30 days.
Moreover, any centre that refuses to abide by the instructions set by the higher education ministry will have their names removed from the registers of universities, colleges, and institutions. The Maldives Qualification Authority (MQA) and the Maldives National Skills Development Authority (MNSDA) will also revoke the permissions and services provided to the centre.
The regulation also allows the higher education ministry to investigate complaints regarding any individual or institution in the higher education sector and transfer the case to other state entities if the case does not fall under the jurisdiction of the ministry.
