South African Student Protests

During a briefing to the National Assembly, the Department of Higher Education, Universities South Africa (USAf) and South African Public Colleges Organisation (Sapco) agreed that national issues, rather than institution-specific ones, were driving the protests in institutions of higher learning.

These protests were deemed valid by the attendees of the briefing. However, the deputy minister of higher education, science and innovation, Buti Manamela, expressed concern over the violent nature of some of the protests. The meeting also discussed specific incidents of violence, such as assaults on educators in the Western Cape and acts of arson committed by students in KwaZulu-Natal. In Gauteng, students surrounded the vice-chancellor’s home and threatened to burn it down, resulting in damage to property, blockades on national roads, and threats of violence.

This academic year, 14 institutions have experienced unrest, and four have been negatively impacted by the ongoing National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) strike. During the briefing, the Chair of the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education, Nompendulo Mkhatshwa, acknowledged that many of the issues raised were serious and not the fault of the students.

The Director-general of higher education, Nkosinathi Sishi, presented the committee with issues affecting students, such as the delayed release of National Senior Certificates, which has hindered new students from registering and applying for funds from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).

The outdated NSFAS system, which started processing 50,000 students and is now processing approximately one million students, has also caused delays in registration and requires an upgrade, according to Sishi.