Varsities probe report goes to parliament

A probe report into public and private Institutions of Higher Learning to establish whether universities provide quality education will be handed over to parliament for scrutiny this week. The NewTimes has learnt that a five-man Adhoc Committee selected last year by parliament to investigate the universities is now scrutinizing the report before handing it to the house. Sources from one of the universities told The New Times, on Friday that the quality of education provided in some universities was “found wanting.” The Adhoc Committee members include MPs, Adolphe Bazatoha, Emmanuel Mudidi Aimable Nibishaka, Agnes Mukazibera and Suzanne Mukayijore. When contacted yesterday, Nibishaka confirmed the development but declined to reveal the findings.“When we table the report to parliament for official discussion, we shall invite media and tell them the findings,” Nibishaka said over the phone yesterday. The lawmaker also confirmed the report will be handed over to parliament before the “end of this week.” The Chamber of Deputies on August, 3 last year resolved to establish an Adhoc commission to investigate the problems facing universities. The probe team was among other things supposed to look into the institutions’ curriculum, course contents and how relevant they are to the economic development of the country. Another sensitive area the committee had to check was whether the universities provide quality education and quantity of teaching materials like laboratory or relevant textbooks. The source said qualifications of lecturers were scrutinized. The NewTimes could not by press time independently verify reports that some lecturers had questionable academic papers. According to the source, institutions were put to task to explain how they compare day and evening students in terms of performance considering that day students study longer hours but both spend the same number of years. Ends

National

Varsities probe report goes to parliament