UKZN alumni donate R1m to help students with R72m historic debt

University of KwaZulu-Natal alumni have contributed R1m towards helping 1,435 students settle their R72m historic debt - a portion of which must be paid before they will be allowed to register.

The donation follows a plea by the institution on Wednesday for stakeholders to help the students settle their debts.

“The convocation executive committee of UKZN ... heeded the call for financial support made by the university management and donated R1m towards the 15% required for the registration fees from students.

“The body representing the university alumni said it was lending support to the students after the call for all stakeholders to assist in the financial challenges facing the university with regard to the historical student debt and registration fees,” the university said on Thursday.

UKZN vice-chancellor Prof Nana Poku made a call to all stakeholders to get involved and help with “any possible amicable solutions to the present challenge”. 

“From his report it emerged that student debt has climbed from R600m in 2010 to R1.7bn in 2019, and therefore he asserted that the university does not possess the financial capacity to write off students’ debt,” the statement read.

In recent weeks the university has been plagued by violent protests which included incidents of arson at some of its campuses, as students voiced their anger about the historical debt issue.

Students were required to settled 15% of this debt before registering for the new academic year.

Duduzane Zuma reportedly pledged an “undisclosed amount” of money recently to help  students, after receiving letters asking for financial assistance.

In a viral video, Zuma pleads with the students to stop burning buildings.

Fanele Sibisi, head of the committee, said the financial crisis of the students “should be an issue for all the university stakeholders concerned, since the challenges of student debt, poverty and unemployment are the realities of our current economic situation, which are confronted by the majority of the families where our students come from.

“We cannot turn a blind eye to the situation, and are calling for everyone to contribute towards a solution,” said Sibisi.

He said the funds must help “60% of undergraduate students and 40% of the funds will assist our postgraduate students”.

“The targeted students will be students who are from disadvantaged backgrounds and whose family income falls under the R350,000 a year threshold.

“We are hoping that the funds will assist the students towards the required 15% payment and also cover some of the historical debt.”

Sibisi challenged other stakeholders to follow suit.