Legal experts and academics have expressed concerns over new laws which they believe will undermine the independence of South Africa’s universities.<\/p>\n
The 2016 Higher Education Amendment\u00a0Act<\/a><\/strong> became\u00a0largely operational last week, reports Legalbrief’s<\/a><\/strong> Pam Saxby.<\/p>\n The Act empowers the minister of higher education to determine transformation goals for the sector, along with oversight mechanisms to ensure that they are achieved.<\/p>\n These include the “articulation and recognition” of prior learning frameworks across the education, as well as the ability to amend the criteria for recognition as a university, university college, or higher education.<\/p>\n “Less widely reported in the media are provisions in the new statute,” said Saxby.<\/p>\n “(These) strengthen the minister\u2019s powers to intervene when a tertiary institution has been found to be \u2018underperforming\u2019; and facilitating \u2018stricter oversight\u2019 of government subsidy spending.”<\/p>\n These include the power to\u00a0change the processes, procedures and mandates of universities and other higher education institutions.<\/p>\n It also empowers the minister to withhold funding in cases where the minister deems it necessary.<\/p>\n