The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Professor Eli Katunguka, the Vice Chancellor of Kyambogo University, has stated that this administration has no plans to raise its tuition fees despite the rising prices of goods and services.
While other public universities have been increasing tuition and fees for private students, who currently make up the majority of these institutions and are paying fees that are nearly as high as those charged by some private universities, Kyambogo University has maintained its current fee structure for years.
Professor Katunguka, who was recently given a new five-year term in office, noted that their current stance on tuition has left them standing out as one of the most affordable among all public universities, providing accessible quality education to students.
Katunguka expressed surprise at the student protests over the relatively small amount of money that the university collects, emphasizing that it is the student’s obligation to pay this amount to receive an education. He noted that such behavior was uncommon at Kyambogo, but external factors may be influencing the students’ actions.
He added that although their student population, more so those on private sponsorship, is growing yearly, the government has provided significant support, particularly in covering staff salaries, which has alleviated what could have been their biggest burden. Since the government has taken on this financial burden, Professor Katunguka believes that there is no reason to review the university’s fee structure.
Despite maintaining their fee structures for several years, other universities such as Makerere have implemented changes. In 2018, Makerere University introduced the controversial “15 percent policy,” which called for a 15 percent increase in tuition fees every academic year for the next five years. This move was met with widespread student protests, including the well-known “FeesMustFall” demonstrations that rocked Makerere almost every academic year since then.
However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and economic constraints, the university temporarily suspended the policy in 2021. Kyambogo is currently operating with a reduced staff due to many approved vacancies in the new structure remaining unfilled as a result of the government’s failure to increase their wage bill.
Consequently, the university has had to rely heavily on part-time lecturers, which is proving to be expensive. Records indicate that Kyambogo is currently functioning with only 34 percent of its approved staff on the government payroll. However, the vice chancellor expressed optimism that in the upcoming financial year, they might receive an increase in wages to address this issue.
The university has recently faced protests from students over several initiatives, including the imposition of a surcharge of 50,000 shillings for those who delay paying their tuition beyond the eighth week. However, according to Katunguka, the surcharge was implemented as a mechanism to encourage students to pay their tuition on time.
The university has been monitoring the situation and has noticed that many students tend to delay paying their tuition fees until the last few weeks before exams, causing a rush in payments. “Through our investigation, we have established that sometimes these students come with the money in the first week and keep it with them. So, to ensure that students pay their fees on time, we introduced the surcharge. However, we have told the students that we understand the financial situation is not good, and the university council has the capacity to suspend or even drop the policy completely,” he said.
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