Shortage of student accommodation at universities
JOHANNESBURG – McMurray explains that R1.6 billion is not enough to build additional accommodation for students as it will only provide 9 000 beds by 2016.
If you are struggling to find student accommodation than there is good reason for it explained Craig McMurray from Respublica.
“The problem is there is not enough accommodation for students at universities and colleges.”
According to the Department of Higher Education, there is a significant lack of student accommodation and this prompted the Minister of Higher Education and Training, Blade Nzimande, to announce that plans are underway to build additional capacity at tertiary institutions.
McMurray said, “The government allocated R1.6 billion in funding for student accommodation together with each university’s own funding of about an average of R700 million. This will only be sufficient to deliver an additional 9 000 beds by 2016. This is not even sufficient to accommodate a third of the new enrollments, let alone deal with the backlog.”
“Considering the limited resources from universities and the government, it is imperative that all parties engage far more meaningfully with the private sector to help alleviate the shortage as recommended in the Ministerial review on Student Housing back in 2012,” concluded McMurray.
