Regional
News
BOTSWANA
The government's decision to discontinue nonmilitary national service
in April has resulted in a shortage of university places. Nearly 20,000
students, including those studying abroad, applied to institutions of
education in Botswana this year, overwhelming university admissions. The
University of Botswana was able
to accommodate more students than it has in the past, but only modestly
so, increasing the number of places for first-year medical and engineering
courses from only 600 to 700.
The Ministry
of Education has promised to find 3,000 additional places overseas for
candidates who couldn't get into the university due to a shortage of space.
However, many foreign institutions require more than O-level exams for
admission.
Insufficient
staff and crowded classrooms are adversely affecting the quality of education
at the University of Botswana, officials say. For example, some tutorial
classes now have 100 students attending.
The National
Youth Council has called on the university to begin holding classes on
weekends and to hire part-time instructors.
— The Times Higher Education Supplement
Oct. 20, 2000
GAMBIA
Students in the Business Studies Department of the Gambia Technical Training
Institute went on strike Nov. 21 to protest the administration's failure
to give them access to computers, which was stipulated in their syllabus.
Almost 200
students converged at the school's assembly hall last month and accused
institute officials of not providing them with access to computers. The
students said that since they began classes in September, the administration
had shown little interest in seeing them successfully pursue their computer
courses. . They claimed that the situation was so bad, that many of them
don't even know how to operate a computer.
— The Point
Nov. 22, 2000
KENYA
The Commission of Higher Education has recognized a new private university
near Nairobi called Kabarak University. The school plans to offer degree
programs encompassing a wide range of disciplines, including theology,
business, education, finance, economics, environmental sciences, law and
agriculture.
Kabarak University
hopes to admit approximately 1,500 students each year and, by 2006, is
expected to become Kenya's largest private university, with more than
6,000 students. The school is the sixth private university in the country
to gain recognition from the Commission of Higher Education.
— The Times Higher Education Supplement
Nov. 3, 2000
Education authorities in Nairobi recently defended a controversial degree
program offered at state-run universities, claiming they are promoting
the country's educational progress. The officials explained that the "parallel-degree
program" is intended to help further the education of qualified students
who could not find university places without going abroad.
According
to Kenya's Ministry of Education, the country loses approximately US$19
million each year to foreign universities. It added that if more Kenyan
students enroll in local institutions of higher education, the country
would likely stem the outflow of foreign exchange and curb the potential
for brain drain.
However,
due to overcrowding and financial limitations, Kenya's 13 universities
— six of them public — can only absorb approximately 1,200 candidates
each. As a result, 17,000 qualified Kenyan students are left unplaced
each year; many others end up enrolling at foreign universities.
Students
who cannot get into the faculty of their choice often end up taking courses
unrelated to their interests. Hence, the government introduced parallel
degree programs for students who are unplaced. Students in these programs
attend the same classes as regular students, but pay for their education.
On Nov. 16,
University of Nairobi students rioted in the streets to protest the new
program, claiming it was lowering university standards. During the unrest,
regular students physically attacked their parallel-degree program counterparts.
The university has been closed indefinitely as a result.
— Panafrican News Agency
Nov. 24, 2000
SOUTH AFRICA
A report published by a government-appointed independent assessor recommends
that South Africa's University of
the North be shut down temporarily to restructure. In particular,
it calls for the university to develop new policies, weed out disruptive
students and fire incompetent staff members.
Other universities
that have been similarly investigated during the past two years include:
University of Fort Hare, University
of Venda, University
of Zululand, University of Transkei,
University of the North-West and
the Medical University of South Africa.
All
seven of these universities suffer from debt crisis and other financial
woes, declining student enrollments, mismanagement and, in some cases,
corruption.
— The Times Higher Education Supplement
Oct. 27, 2000
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