Main points

• As in other countries, the high stakes of education in combination with weak oversight have contributed to the existence and normalisation of certain corruption practices in Ukraine’s secondary education system.
• The Russian invasion launched in 2022 has both created new issues and exacerbated existing vulnerabilities.
• The fairness of academic processes in Ukrainian secondary education, especially admission, exam grading and supplementary tutoring, may be distorted by bribery and favouritism.
• Furthermore, aspects of resource management, such as procurement tendering and the spending of parental donations, are vulnerable to misappropriation and conflict of interest. Further, there are some gaps in human resource processes, such as the appointment of heads of secondary education institutions, that can enable favouritism.
• Despite this, recently there have been many positive developments in Ukraine addressing corruption in the education sector, such as the adoption of risk management approaches and enhanced transparency measures.
• These have the potential to be scaled up with support from the international community, as well as civil society and local stakeholders.