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IT IS TOO EXPENSIVE TO STUDY

17/03/2014 04:37:00 The editor

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Sir,

I am a swazi student currently studying in one of the universities in South Africa. Due to my status, I am required to have a study permit in order to study in South Africa.

New ways have been implemented for the application of a study permit such as having it to be renewed every year and in that yearly renewal everyone is expected to pay a medical cover which is around E4 000. This has caused too much pain to us due to the fact that we pay this amount (those who can afford it) only to find that when you are sick while in SA and go to a certain hospital, they tell you that your medical card is not approved in that hospital, it is only approved in Johannesburg while you may be studying in Northwest Mafikeng which is 500km away.

Cover

What adds salt to the wound is that you find that you have never used even a single cent of the money you paid for medical cover but the next year you have to pay another E4 000. A lot of Swazi citizens are currently just sitting at home because they could not afford the money for medical cover. As a result, they could not access the study permit because it was too much.

Now the question remains: is Swaziland fighting against raising its economy by doing this (blocking us to study), does it still want to see an illiterate, poor, suffering and outdated generation?
How can we pay E4 000 for medical cover, then E1 000 for a study permit, then when we reach South Africa we should have an upfront sum of registration that is around E8 000, then paying for residence upfront that is around E7 000 and at the same time we have to have food so we can survive?

Mpumelelo

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Comments (4 posted):

WANDILE DLUDLU on 17/03/2014 09:05:43

yoooh! come back to ur home country,therefore u wl survive

Swazi Citizen on 17/03/2014 10:41:10

Wandile, what you just suggested is not going to help the aggrieved student nor will it help the country. I do share the same sentiments with the letter's author. My institution may not be having such expensive prices and the need of upfront payments of that price yet but soon enough they are going to do so. Reasons are simple because Swazi sponsors are never reliable. The sponsor will promise the institution to pay on a certain date and when such a date comes and having not made the payment, no one will bother atleast to make a follow up excuse. This HAS broken the confidence South African institutions have in the country. Coming back to the issue at hand, study permit are of vital importance, however means should be made to have these medical aid payments to be atleast paid in instalment. Some medical aids should just be scrapped off the shelf, (GETmed to be precise) because their products are not exactly what they advertise. Standard Authorities should help in that regard to ensure every swazi student is covered and like most insurance, they should atleast have a money back priviledge for those who never make use of the medical aids.

Grant on 17/03/2014 14:32:59

Yooh, i can almost imagine the appaling situation you find yourselves in, ngatsi some of us suffer ngisho silakhaya.

khaya on 17/03/2014 20:53:53

Well said dear reader, im also studying at Northwest University Mafikeng and they dont recognise the Medical Aid from Swaziland and it got to the point of where im asking myself kutsi do we really need to do this medical aid thing because its too expensive and on top of that we even hardly use that money on that aid..