Makerere appeals to govt for salaries
Sep 06, 2011
UGANDA'S main university Makerere is facing a cash crisis and will not meet its wage bill for satff this month without aid from the government.
By DARIOUS MAGARA,
JEFF ANDREW LULE
and ANDREW SSENYONGA
UGANDA'S main university Makerere is facing a cash crisis and will not meet its wage bill for satff this month without aid from the government.
The University Vice-Chancellor Prof Venansius Baryamureeba said the university had not generated enough funds.
He said the financial crisis at the university has been caused by its closure following both lecturers’ and students’ strikes last week. He said most students had not paid their tuition.
The bulk of students at the public university are on a private sponsorship scheme and through them, the university generates the biggest chunk of its revenue which it applies to meet its recurrent expenditure.
The university council closed the university last Thursday following the lecturers’ resolution to continue with their strike over salary increment, pension funds held by the National Insurance Corporation (NIC) and top up allowances and arrears.
“We have appealed to the Government to take on the payroll by 100% since the other component of student’s contribution of their tuition has not been realised,†Baryamureeba said yesterday.
Addressing journalists at at Makerere, he said staff salaries are paid from sh2.6b released from the treasury and sh2.2b internally generated.
“Given that staff salaries are paid from two components, we are stuck†he said.
“Therefore, under these circumstances, the university will be unable to cover its payroll starting this month,†Baryamureba noted.
On the closure of the university, he said they were consulting the Government as stakeholders to find a lasting solution.
Baryamureeba said the issue of the unpaid lecturers pension funds totaling to sh16.7b by NIC and their salary increment were being discussed in detail with various stakeholders, including the lecturers’ executives.
Management was slated to meet the executives yesterday afternoon to devise tenable means of resolving their issues with university management and the Government.
“We do not like this strike to continue. We want to sort it out at once with all the stakeholders,†he said.
Baryamureba said they were going to compensate the student’s for the lost time.
In a separate meeting, Makerere University Academic Staff Association spokesperson Louis Kakinda said they were ready to resume lectures once their grievances are addressed.
He said various executives from different associations had already met and made resolutions which would be presented to the university management for a final decision on the prevailing situation.
Baryamureeba, however, said they had resolved with other university stakeholders to keep some university units open to ease their consultations.
The units include the college of health sciences to facilitate learning and services offered at Mulago Hospital and the upcountry campuses of Jinja and Fort portal.
Others are the Makerere University Institute of Social Research and Makerere University Agricultural Research Institute, Kabanyolo.
JEFF ANDREW LULE
and ANDREW SSENYONGA
UGANDA'S main university Makerere is facing a cash crisis and will not meet its wage bill for satff this month without aid from the government.
The University Vice-Chancellor Prof Venansius Baryamureeba said the university had not generated enough funds.
He said the financial crisis at the university has been caused by its closure following both lecturers’ and students’ strikes last week. He said most students had not paid their tuition.
The bulk of students at the public university are on a private sponsorship scheme and through them, the university generates the biggest chunk of its revenue which it applies to meet its recurrent expenditure.
The university council closed the university last Thursday following the lecturers’ resolution to continue with their strike over salary increment, pension funds held by the National Insurance Corporation (NIC) and top up allowances and arrears.
“We have appealed to the Government to take on the payroll by 100% since the other component of student’s contribution of their tuition has not been realised,†Baryamureeba said yesterday.
Addressing journalists at at Makerere, he said staff salaries are paid from sh2.6b released from the treasury and sh2.2b internally generated.
“Given that staff salaries are paid from two components, we are stuck†he said.
“Therefore, under these circumstances, the university will be unable to cover its payroll starting this month,†Baryamureba noted.
On the closure of the university, he said they were consulting the Government as stakeholders to find a lasting solution.
Baryamureeba said the issue of the unpaid lecturers pension funds totaling to sh16.7b by NIC and their salary increment were being discussed in detail with various stakeholders, including the lecturers’ executives.
Management was slated to meet the executives yesterday afternoon to devise tenable means of resolving their issues with university management and the Government.
“We do not like this strike to continue. We want to sort it out at once with all the stakeholders,†he said.
Baryamureba said they were going to compensate the student’s for the lost time.
In a separate meeting, Makerere University Academic Staff Association spokesperson Louis Kakinda said they were ready to resume lectures once their grievances are addressed.
He said various executives from different associations had already met and made resolutions which would be presented to the university management for a final decision on the prevailing situation.
Baryamureeba, however, said they had resolved with other university stakeholders to keep some university units open to ease their consultations.
The units include the college of health sciences to facilitate learning and services offered at Mulago Hospital and the upcountry campuses of Jinja and Fort portal.
Others are the Makerere University Institute of Social Research and Makerere University Agricultural Research Institute, Kabanyolo.