Nzimande laments private sector apathy towards student accommodation

22 July 2016 - 13:19 By Shenaaz Jamal

The private sector has failed to join forces with government to help tackle the shortage for student accommodation in the country.

This is according to Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande‚ in his address at the first-ever student accommodation symposium held at Unisa in Pretoria on Thursday.Nzimande said the response to his call for the private sector to enter into a private public partnership had been dismal.The department recently surveyed all universities‚ and found that only two projects that were public and private partnerships were concluded since 2012.“Between them‚ they provided only 4000 beds. However‚ in reality‚ only 1100 of these beds are actually new‚ or help to alleviate the dire shortage."The other 3000 already existed in university-owned residences on a rural campus‚ and are simply being refurbished‚” Nzimande added.In its report to Parliament last year‚ the department stated that for the past three years‚ it had been supplementing its R1.6-billion grants to universities for student housing infrastructure projects with R700-million intended for university funds.This‚ however‚ only provided 9000 new students beds out of the 200 000 needed - a demand Nzimande said the department would not be able to meet in the 2012 Ministerial Review report.“If we conducted another Ministerial Review‚ we would conclude that left to the market‚ we will never provide the number of beds we need‚” said Nzimande.Over 100 000 students live in accommodation run by businesses‚ with tens of thousands more students renting accommodation in informal settlements‚ backyard rooms‚ RDP houses converted to student rooms‚ private homes.The European Union Infrastructure Investment Fund for South Africa‚ granted the department R30-million to kickstart the student housing programme‚ which will be used to conduct feasibility studies for six student accommodation housing projects.The department has also brought the Development Bank of Southern Africa‚ as well as the Department of Public Works and the Public Investment Cooperation‚ on board to work with it in developing a strategy to tackle the student accommodation problem.– TMG Digital/The Times..

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