The education system in the Central African Republic is going through a critical period marked by a worrying drift. According to information relayed by Corbeau News Centrafrique, meritocracy, the traditional foundation of academic success, is gradually fading in favor of informal financial practices. In many establishments, access to education and the validation of academic paths now seem conditioned by the ability of families to pay unofficial fees, relegating the work and actual skills of students to the background. This degradation occurs as the Central African authorities have increased official speeches regarding the smooth running and importance of the start of the school year. However, a flagrant gap persists between these institutional declarations and the daily lives of learners. While the situation in Bangui is the subject of discussions, the difficulties become particularly acute in the provinces, where access to equitable education is severely hampered. Public inaction in the face of this commercialization of education raises serious questions about the future of Central African youth. Replacing merit with money in schools not only weakens the quality of learning but also undermines citizens' trust in public service. To date, although the persistence of these informal practices is widely documented by various reports, the exact extent of the networks involved and the corrective measures the government intends to take remain major gray areas for observers of the national education system.