University of Zimbabwe not opening Monday due to high fees

By Tichaona Sibanda
27 March 2009

Almost 10 000 students from the University of Zimbabwe have failed to pay their fees for the first term of the 2009 academic year, and this has forced the institution to postpone opening its doors on Monday next week.

The UZ initially resumed lectures in January this year but was forced to close, following demonstrations by students after authorities asked them to pay their fees in foreign currency.

Clever Bere, the President of the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU) told us each student was being asked to pay at least US$800 for this academic term. He told us government’s attitude towards students was creating ground for conflict.

‘Our parents are being paid US$100 a month so where do authorities think we get that sort of money from,’ asked Bere.

The student leader said 95 percent of students at the UZ had failed to pay for their fees. He said this represents about 10 000 out of 13 000 students registered with the institution.

‘When we demonstrated against the high fees in January, they had asked us to pay US$200 but that amount has since gone up to US$800. It’s unfortunate that most of us can’t afford that amount,’ Bere said.

He added; ‘We are actively involved in talks with the stakeholders but so far these negotiations have not yielded anything positive. In fact, the higher education minister Stan Mudenge has been avoiding us, so how do you hope to solve this problem when the major player is not sincere.’

The student leader said the hold up to the academic year was a major blow to many students who were hoping to graduate this year. Already many students have lost a year of studies following a series of clashes with university authorities