‘Meal allowance withdrawal not punitive’
GOVERNMENT’S decision to stop giving meal allowances to students at the University of Zambia (UNZA) and the Copperbelt University is not punitive, says former Finance Minister Katele Kalumba.
Dr Kalumba said in an interview yesterday that Government was weighed down financially by meal allowances offered to students at the two universities and that the State should try to engage and explain to stakeholders that the decision was for the good of the nation.
He said Government had a lot of financial obligations in the midst of real but not ill intended austerity measures which were announced by Minister of Finance Margaret Mwanakatwe.
Dr Kalumba said the university is an institution that allowed learning and that it was able to analyse government position objectively.
He said stopping paying the meal allowances was a tough decision but urged stakeholders such as student unions to be patient.
‘‘It is a catch 22 position for both students and government. As macroeconomic indicators change the value of students bursary also changes. Usually he or she has to tighten up or ask for more support.
‘‘Equally, government exposure in terms of spending has to be aligned in the context of the debt overhung, by measures that may hurt in the short term,’’ Dr Kalumba said.
Government has saidd that all 2019 first year students under the Students loan and higher education scholarship will no longer get meal allowance.
Speaking at a media briefing in Lusaka recently, Higher Education Minister Nkandu Luo said the loans scheme would now only cover accommodation and tuition fees both of which would be paid directly to the learning institutions, while the student would only be paid book and project allowances.
She said this would only affect new loan beneficiaries of 2019 and would not affect existing loan beneficiary contracts at UNZA, CBU and Kapasa Makasa Universities.