The ruling party the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) promised in their manifesto to pay P2, 500 tertiary students’ allowances per month if the coalition won the election. But when Finance Minister and Vice President, Ndaba Gaolathe, delivered the Budget Speech this week, he did not say anything about students' allowance. Instead, he revealed that the government has committed to increasing the Old Age Pension (Tandabala Allowance) from P830 to P1, 400 effective April 1, 2025, among others. Responding to Gaolathe’s speech, Saleshando who is the Leader of Opposition (LoO) criticised the UDC government for not increasing the living allowance for tertiary students to P 2, 500 for all tertiary and vocational training institutions. “Tertiary education student allowance must be increased. The government must acknowledge that an inadequate allowance, P1, 900 at present, undermines the investment we make in learners because they are not able to attend classes. The government should further note that it is children from poor backgrounds who suffer the most as a result of an inadequate student allowance,” Saleshando pointed out.
He said as the BCP, they call for an increase in tertiary student allowances based on two criteria, cost of living and ability to pay. “Further, the government should stop treating un-equals as equals. Doing so is discrimination against those from poor backgrounds. We are amazed that in this budget, bridging the gap between allowances for TVET institutions takes precedence over the adequacy of student allowances in all institutions and setting the minimum allowance payable at P 2, 500.00,” he said. Saleshando said allowance should be higher in high-cost living areas such as Gaborone. Last December, shortly after taking over the government, the Ministry of Higher Education committed to disbursing the P2, 500 monthly allowances to tertiary students.
