DCEC investigates tertiary institutions
Innocent Selatlhwa | Thursday March 10, 2016 18:00
In response to Mmegi enquiries, the DCEC public relations officer Phakamile Kraai stated that the agency is currently investigating some issues, with some already completed.
A number of tertiary institutions have in the recent past experienced a fair share of protests relating to quality of education offered. This, coupled with some institutions accused of using unqualified lecturers, un-credited courses, unpaid allowances to low quality of food, has many wondering if there was some element of corruption in accrediting and regulation.
“The DCEC has received some reports and some have been closed due to reasons such as insufficient evidence or loss of key witnesses. The courts have completed some matters while others are still under investigation,” he said. Kraai added that the agency has received and investigated several matters relating to tertiary education sponsorship from different institutions in the country. “The most prevalent cases involved students who are still sponsored while they have failed and discontinued their studies,” he said.
On whether they ever follow up on allegations expressed by learners and published in newspapers, Kraai said the DCEC uses all sources including newspaper articles to kick-start an investigation. He said some of the allegations have been classified for investigations.
The Botswana Qualifications Authority (BQA), the regulator, has expressed satisfaction with compliance of the institutions noting a few challenges, which they said they are dealing with. The education ministry has also expressed faith and support in BQA.
In recent times, among the institutions that experienced student demonstrations are Francistown Vocational Training, Gaborone Technical College, and New Era College in Gaborone. The government ones were closed indefinitely and learners have since been asked to re-apply for admission, something students view as intimidation.