It’s just over a month since students at multiple universities marked the beginning of the 2021 academic year by protesting against financial exclusion and calling for a national shutdown. Such protests have become an annual event. One that often result in short-term victories for students, without solving the intractable issue of higher education funding in South Africa.

The disquiet over free education and the handling of student debt locally, takes place within a global context in which higher education institutions are wrestling with questions about funding models, debt and sustainability, all of which is intensified by the devastating economic consequences of COVID19.

Is writing off all historical debt the right approach? What are the consequences for higher education if we do? Does the unemployment crisis in South Africa have a role to play? Is free tertiary education attainable, or a fallacy? There are many angles one could look at this from, and we plan to interrogate them all.