Varsity students press for regional syllabus

DAR ES SALAAM - Students from several East African universities have called for a harmonised education syllabus in the regional. The students say that there should similar education syllabi in the East African Community (EAC). The EAC is a five-nation bloc that brings together Burundi, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. The students expressed views during a two-day summit held last weekend in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The summit was organised by their umbrella association, the East African Community Students Union (EACSU). “We think that the issue of having different education syllabi is impeding integration,” Steven Seka, the EACSU president, said. Isabella Epiu, the vice president of EACSU, argued that unless regional institutions of learning coordinate their curriculum, integration aspirations will be thwarted. However, the Guild president of the University of Dar es Salaam, Daudi Deo, said: “This is a process that cannot be done overnight because different lecturers of different universities in this community received different training.” He accused Kenya and Uganda of refusing to respect an agreement reached on by the East African Council of Ministers to stop charging exorbitant tuition fees on foreign students. “This University (of Dar es Salaam) had stopped charging additional money on international students due to that agreement reached on by the EAC Ministers in 2005, but that system has been reinstated because Kenya and Uganda have not respected it,” he said The vice Chancellor of University of Dar es Salaam Prof. Rwekaza Mukanadala said that the Inter University Council of East Africa (IUCEA) is currently working on how to have single education curriculum for the regional Ends

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Varsity students press for regional syllabus