Back to Index

Chaos at UZ as services dwindle
Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition
May 31, 2007

Zimbabwe's largest institution of higher learning, the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) is on the verge of collapse. The institution has been experiencing a myriad of administrative and financial problems leading to the postponement of examinations originally penciled for June to July 2007.

Apparently, four faculties at the campus, namely Law, Medicine, Engineering and Social Work departments are writing exams while the other 7 faculties had their semester extended to the 22nd of July. However, the students in the faculties which are writing examinations did not get adequate lectures due to a strike for better salaries and working conditions.

Furthermore, students at the university are living in squalid conditions. Zwelithini Viki, an outgoing member of the Students Executive Council (SEC) informed The Catalyst team that the sanitary conditions at the UZ are unbefitting for a university. Raw sewage is reportedly flowing freely near dining halls and student hostels while lavatories in the residence are overflowing due to poor water supplies to the university.

In addition to the problems being faced by students, the food being served at the institution is substandard. Some students have resorted to eating food from private caterers which costs between $30 000 and $35 000. This means that an average student taking two meals a day will require Z$455 000 per week an amount that is well beyond the reach of the majority students.

This situation is not unique to the UZ as other state institutions are experiencing similar problems. Students at the Midlands State University (MSU) are going for days with no electricity, a predicament of national electricity blackouts currently facing the nation. The situation for students is made worse by poor water supplies, due to incompetence by the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA).

The collapse of the country's education delivery system is linked to the governance crisis that Zimbabwe is grappling with. Due to economic hardships, the majority poor can no longer afford to send or maintain their children at school or university, rendering education merely a preserve of the elite.

Visit the Crisis in Zimbabwe fact sheet

Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.

TOP