Concerns over implementation of free education plan

 It says the announcement does not deal with implementation. 

BASA’s Cas Coovadia says while they welcome Zuma's announcement, they are worried about how such a financial commitment can be implemented in South Africa's current economy climate.

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''How can South Africa afford free tertiary education at a time where we have been downgraded and feeling enormous fiscal pressure?

''Before making commitments of free tertiary education, we have to talk about how we going to fund such initiatives and the trade-off between free education and other very important demands on the fiscus."

Coovadia says the president's announcement suggests that he made an unilateral decision, with no discussions with economic advisors. He believes the announcement is ''a way of fooling South Africans by adopting unaffordable populist policies in the name of the poor without the ability or even the political will to deliver”. 

Meanwhile, both the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) welcomed the announcement, Cosatu hurling it as ''long overdue'', while Nehawu says it ''fulfils the clause of the Freedom Charter''.

Cosatu's Sizwe Pamla says free education is feasible if wasteful expenditure can be curbed.

''Currently South Africa is losing roughly R147 billion from the money that is illegally taken out of the country per year.

''This is the money that can accommodate all South African students at a university level for free.''

Nehawu says even though they are elated by the announcement, they ''hope that the money to fund free education will not disadvantage other key and essential government expenditure priorities like the implementation of the National Health Insurance (NHI)".

Similarly, Parliament's Select Committee on Education and Recreation welcomed the President's announcement on free tertiary education.

Chairperson for the committee, Lungelwa Zwane, says ''while the Committee welcomes the announcement it will engage the Department of Higher Education and Training on the mechanics, implementation plan and funding model to support the rollout.''