The Deputy Minister of Higher Education and Training, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, says bogus colleges are robbing young people of their future by denying them opportunities to gain employment due to students obtaining qualifications from unregistered institutions of higher learning.
Gondwe made the remarks during her two-day Bogus Colleges Awareness campaign in Durban on Wednesday.
KwaZulu-Natal has the second-largest student concentration after Gauteng. It faces challenges such as the proliferation of unregistered private colleges in the inner city and registered private colleges that offer unaccredited programmes.
“Some of the learners are the only hope for their families. Their parents invest in their education so that their child can be qualified and have a successful career...
"Now, if a learner studies via a bogus college, they are effectively robbed of an opportunity to gain a legitimate qualification and employment opportunities. It is also robbing the student and their parents of hard-earned money,” said the Deputy Minister.
The awareness campaign was a collaborative government effort led by the Deputy Minister in partnership with the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, the Department of Employment and Labour and the Department of Home Affairs.
“As a university City, we have a responsibility to ensure that the thousands of people who come to our City to access higher education register with recognised and legal institutions.
“Durban is a university City because it is home to UKZN, Durban University of Technology, Mangosuthu University of Technology, and numerous TVET colleges, as well as several private institutions of higher learning,” said Cllr Nkosenhle Madlala, eThekwini Municipality, Governance and Human Capital Committee Chairperson.
The Deputy Minister, along with all stakeholders, visited several private colleges around the Durban City Centre on Monty Naicker and West Street.
Some private colleges were found to be registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training, but compliance issues were flagged, and students also raised concerns about fee payments and the lack of refunds.
The Deputy Minister instructed officials from the department to provide assistance to all students.
Gondwe reiterated her stance on the important role played by private higher education institutions but insisted that this needed to be done within the confines of the law.
“They are allowed to operate, but they have to operate within lawful parameters, and that is what we are trying to ensure that their operations are legal and are registered with us and that the programmes they’re offering are accredited by our quality assurance bodies, Umalusi, QCTO and the Council on Higher Education,’’ she explained.
The campaign continues in the Durban CBD, with further oversight of private institutions of higher education scheduled for Thursday, 27 March. – SAnews.gov.za
