Will university fees for 2024 academic year increase?
Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande has weighed in on claims that he wants to increase university fees for the 2024 academic year.
Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande has dismissed claims that he intends to increase university fees for the 2024 academic year.
This comes as circulating social media posts suggest Nzimande wants to increase fees.
WILL UNIVERSITY FEES INCREASE IN 2024?
The Department of Higher Education and Training asserted that the Minister Blade Nzimande plays no role in determining the fees of universities.
By the Higher Education Act 101 of 1997, the authority to determine the fees of individual universities rests with University Councils.
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“Therefore, the Minister has no such authority to determine the individual fees of universities, and to do so would be to act ultra (beyond his powers) on the part of the Minister.
“However, given the socio-economic reality of our country, through the Department, each year, the Minister usually provides the universities with a framework that should guide how they determine their fee structure,” spokesperson Veli Mbele said.
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Mbele said Nzimande does this to ensure that, in how universities determine their fee structures, students, particularly those from poor and working-class backgrounds, are not adversely affected by the fee determinations of universities.
“The Minister regards it as disappointing and somewhat mischievous that formal organisations and long-standing media houses would make public statements on university fees without first informing themselves on determining university fees,” he added.
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