Tanzania (1) -- Analyses -- 2009

Tanzania: Country to Provide Loans to 70,000 Students

01.09.2009

Dar Es Salaam — The Tanzania Government will provide loans to a total of 69,442 university students, 24,000 of whom will be freshers at a cost of Tshs197.3 billion (US$148.35 million) during this academic year that opens this week. This is an increase from Tshs 117 billion ($88 million) which was being provided in the previous three academic years to sponsor students at 30-plus tertiary educational institutions. The Government has said most of the students who will get 100 per cent loans for tuition and other expenses will be those taking sciences and teacher training at the university level. The other students will get less loans depending on a long list of 12 criteria that includes parents or guardians' level of income and necessity for a country that is rapidly preparing its youths to grapple with the requirement for the job market in Tanzania and the East African Community countries. The first list of 18,000 students was released last week. The largest number of students to be given 100% loans are those studying Education to fill the large deficit in the hundreds of secondary schools that have been built by the President Jakaya Kikwete's government in every ward in Tanzania. Many of these have as few teachers as two or three in schools with an enrollment of over 400 students from forms 1 - 4, compounded by shortage of school science laboratories. The Higher Education Students Loans Board (HESLB) has said fresh loans will not exceed 24,000 with the rest being for those in continuing academic years, and yet some of the loans applicants may not get them. An HESLB director responsible for announcing the students loans, Cosmas Mwaisobwa, has said some of the applicants submitted their requests before exam results for 'A' education were out and may have failed to qualify academically, thus the complete list of those given students' loans may not be known for some time. However, Mr Mwaisobwa said all students who qualify for loans shall be given, there shall be no denial of the facility. This was probably stated to stem out potential students' class boycotts that plague universities annually to demand for loans for all students.

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