NUST Forced To Drop Fees Hike After Students Threaten Violent Protests
The National University of Science and Technology (NUST) in Zimbabwe has reversed its recent fee hike following student protests on Monday.
NUST Forced To Drop Fees Hike After Students Threaten Violent Protests [Photo Collage: Protest poster and Barricaded entrance at NUST, Bulawayo main campus]
Earlier today, students reportedly barricaded the walk-in entrance with stones and tree branches and instructed those reporting for lectures to return home as classes had been suspended. Anti-riot police were deployed to the scene to remove the barricades and allow access to the campus.
After a meeting between the NUST management and the Students Representative Council (SRC), the institution reverted to the September 2022 fee structure of US$320 per semester.
Thabani Mpofu, NUST Director of Communication and Marketing, confirmed that the fee hike had been reversed: “There is no fee increase, it was just an error which had happened in their portal, but send me the questions and I will give you what transpired and what we have resolved, as it is everything is back to normal.”
SRC President Muziwenkosi Sigidi Moyo confirmed the development in a statement: “We are happy to inform you that the recently hiked fees of US$720 have been revoked and removed from your portals. Students will now continue to pay the present ZWL fees structure adopted in September 2022. To preserve the value of the finances, the same fees will be pegged at the prevailing interbank rate, and the USD fees structure will be taken down and replaced with last semester’s updated ZWL fees structure.”
Moyo also emphasised the power of student unity: “This is a significant achievement for us as a student Union and demonstrates the power of unity. Together, we can stop the privatization of education and ensure our voices are heard.”