Key Takeaways
- Civil servants returning from foreign scholarships must verify their degrees.
- Officers failing to provide documents may be marked absent from duty.
- New procedures include centralized financial tracking of scholarship recipients.
The federal government has introduced stringent measures for civil servants who have completed foreign scholarships or academic programs, mandating the verification of their degrees and financial liability records.
Under the revised standard operating procedures (SOPs), officers returning from study leave or foreign scholarships are required to submit a certified copy of their degree certificate or an official academic transcript along with their joining report.
The Establishment Division has warned that officers who fail to provide the required academic documents without a verifiable justification may be treated as absent from duty, highlighting the seriousness of the new requirements.
For those whose foreign universities have not yet issued a degree, the officer must provide official documentation from the institution confirming their academic standing and explaining the delay.
The new procedures also introduce a centralized system for tracking financial liabilities arising from government-funded scholarships and professional training programs.
The Training Wing must provide the Executive Wing with a detailed statement of liability for every officer who has signed a surety bond, specifying the scholarship and training costs, recoverable emoluments, and the length of service the officer is required to complete after returning.
These liability statements will become part of the officer’s personal file and must be presented to the relevant authorities when administrative decisions affecting the officer’s career or service conditions are considered.
The move addresses concerns about officers leaving government service or failing to complete mandatory service periods after receiving publicly funded training and educational support.
Pending leave extensions will not excuse absence; civil servants must report back when their approved leave or deputation ends, even if a request for an extension is still awaiting a decision.
Officers who fail to submit a joining report may be classified as absent without authorization, with their cases referred to senior officials for further directions.
