Nzimande challenged over alleged discrimination against black local academics at SA universities

As thousands of new university students prepare to begin the school year, the African Transformation Movement (ATM) has raised questions about the exclusion of black local academics.

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The party’s president Vuyo Zungula has written a letter to Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande complaining about this.

Black SA academics given mediocre positions

“From observation and dialogues with both black South Africans and non-South Africans in the higher education and learning space, my attention was drawn to the presence of highly qualified and skilled black South African academics,” Zungula said.

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According to Zungula, black South African professionals were given mediocre positions despite being highly qualified.

“Often seeing them considered mostly for non-academic employment as administrators and technical staff,” he said.

Zungula said he noted some steps that had been taken by the Higher Education Department to ensure that positions which were mostly reserved for white males were occupied by black males.  

However, he said there seemed to be a preference for foreign national black academics over South African black academics, which posed another challenge.

“At a glance, the staff composition by nationality in many South African institutions of higher learning does not reflect the correct South Africa demographics,” he said.

Zungula said it was clear that there was a deliberate and concerted effort to systematically exclude black South Africans from maximum participation in academia.

“This not only raises concerns about the fair implementation of employment practices but also has broader implications for the principles enshrined in our country’s labour laws, specifically the Employment Equity Act (EEA),” he said.

Zungula said the principles of B-BBEE emphasise the economic empowerment of Black South Africans, and the exclusion of qualified individuals from senior positions contradicts the intent of such policies.

“This issue becomes even more critical in the context of the high levels of unemployment within our country. South African universities and other institutions have a responsibility to contribute to addressing unemployment by prioritising the employment of qualified Black South African citizens,” Zungula said.