Invitation to participate in a public dialogue on the Higher Education Fees Report.
To help clarify and inform discussions on the Higher Education fees report, Cornerstone institute invites you to a public discussion. Discussants: Judge Dennis Davis and Professor Jonathan Jansen
President Jacob Zuma appointed the Heher Commission in 2016 following nationwide student protests under the banner ‘Fees Must Fall’. The commission has been led by Judge Jonathan Heher. Recently, students again protested, calling for the release of the report. In October a leaked copy of the report revealed that free higher education was not feasible. At the time, some students campaigning for free education rejected the leaked commission report.
The report does not suggest that free education for all is feasible. It does, however, make several recommendations.
One recommendation is that all undergraduate and postgraduate students studying at tertiary education institutions, regardless of their family background, be funded through a ‘cost-sharing model of government guaranteed income-contingency loans’. This will be sourced from commercial banks. “Through this cost-sharing model, the commission recommends that commercial banks issue government guaranteed loans to the students that are payable by the student upon graduation and attainment of a specific income threshold. Should the student fail to reach the required income threshold, government bears the secondary liability,” the report reads. For TVET colleges, the commission recommended all students receive fully subsidised free education in the form of grants that cover their full cost of study and that no student should be partially funded.
Gallery Section
[outofthebox dir=”/Cornerstone/Edu Debate” mode=”gallery” downloadrole=”all”]