THE Ministry of Basic Education says dozens of false matric certificates in circulation and have been used by students to gain admittance to higher education institutions and to get jobs.

Cowley van der Merwe, Director of National Examinations and Assessment, revealed this week that the Ministry was considering laying charges against between 30 and 35 individuals whose documents were forged.

The fraud was discovered when documents were presented to the Ministry for verification.

Several forgery cases have been detected at the University of Namibia and the Polytechnic of Namibia over the past couple of years.

Van der Merwe said his directorate was aware of cases where falsified copies of certificates and statements of results were used when applying for employment, bursaries and admission to institutions of higher learning.

He instructed tertiary institutions and employers not to accept certified copies without verifying them against the original documents "because in many cases the certified copies are forged".

"The Ministry is also aware of forged certificates in circulation which very closely resemble the original documents. Original certificates have unique security features only recognisable on the original document," he said.

Van der Merwe said the falsified documents were "not something new".

"Some regions and employers have submitted documents for verification over the years which were found to be false but it looks as if it could be on the increase," he said.