Is free higher education legitimate and affordable in SA? And, if so, which financial model should enable its implementation? These distinct questions are often conflated; as a result, neither is answered satisfactorily. Yet they lie at the very heart of SA’s university crisis.
There are many stakeholders in society who would sympathise with this view, even if they have questions about its affordability. But there are also discordant voices that grapple with how best to address the challenges of higher education.
do not persuasively demonstrate the proposal’s political or economic feasibility. There is no detailed costing of the proposal, nor are there detailed recommendations on the level of tax required to generate the resources for financing the reform. Ironically, here there is substantive agreement among all role players. Everyone recognises that free tuition would not be sufficient as there are too many students without the financial means to cover the costs of accommodation and subsistence. The net result would be wasted resources, as these students would be unable to progress through the system in any case.
But the protesters’ counterargument cannot be ignored. The vast majority of students who gain access to universities are from the richest 10% of the population, although it is worth noting that, because of SA’s skewed distribution of income, this represents largely the middle class.
No such thing as free , tax payer funded or self funded . Tax payer just means there's an opportunity cost of those funds bring deployed else where , some other budget being cut or a new tax employed . Ie: you pay for the rest of your life .
Interesting read.