Students stuck without funding after technical mix-up

After more than four months of study supposedly financed by the Rwandan government, a group of at least 412 students have now been told that their loan applications had, in fact, not been successful.

Dr Rose Mukankomeje, the director-general of Rwanda’s Higher Education Council, blamed the confusion on applications that were submitted online “before the system was ready”.

However, the students say they were told their applications had been successful immediately after submitting them. They became aware of the problem only when their names did not appear on the final list of government-sponsored students, and they were denied access to exams.

One of those affected is Eric Tuyisenge, a first-year mechanical engineering student at the Integrated Polytechnic Regional College, Karongi.

He says that, since he had met all the requirements, he applied for a scholarship online and was told it had been granted. He enrolled, attended class since the start of the academic year on 28 February, and even took part in continuous assessment, “but when the time for exams came, we were denied access”.

“I am now in a dilemma; I cannot go on with studies without a scholarship because my family is too poor to sponsor my education,” Tuyisenge told University World News.

“We have spent time and resources for the past months to start our studies. However, it seems impossible for us to continue unless we get support,” Tuyisenge said. “I want to study hard to realise my dreams and contribute towards my country’s development.”

Sandrine Uwizeyimana, another affected student, said her parents had sold a plot of land to get some money to cover the basics she needed to start university. “The scholarship only starts [paying out] when one has enrolled, and I needed to buy some basic materials. I feel like we are victims who need justice.”

What went wrong with the system?

Mukankomeje explained the problem with the students’ applications: “The students entered the system and applied before the system was ready, thus the feedback they received was not genuine. After realising [what had happened], we opened a new link for application, but the students enrolled using the previous information.”

Mukankomeje told the Rwanda Broadcasting Agency: “I personally apologise. We did not intend to offer internships and then stop it, [but] our stand is that the students were not granted the scholarships.”

But some of the students, including Tuyisenge, insist that they had used the correct link. “You cannot use the system when it is not yet ready. We used it because it was open and ready to receive the information, [and] we also had the positive feedback that the scholarship was granted.”

Mukankomeje said at least 1,000 other students had applied for scholarships to attend the University of Rwanda but were turned down because of budget constraints.

Rwanda’s Higher Education Council annually finances thousands of students who meet the requirements. These include top academic performance, coming from a poor family, and the potential to be successful in courses that have been set as national priorities.

Technical education at a higher-learning institution is one of these priorities. Students who are selected get a full scholarship that caters for tuition fees as well as a living allowance. The scholarship is repayable once the student graduates and secures a job.

The students’ plight has attracted the attention of the CLADHO, an umbrella grouping of human rights organisations. Emmanuel Safari, executive secretary of CLADHO, told University World News that scholarships should never be withdrawn after students had already started to attend classes. He said the students had applied for the scholarships through the normal process and did not understand what had caused them to lose it.

“Students are being denied their rights by those who should help them to get scholarships. The government should look for the funds to sponsor their education, especially given that they had already enrolled,” Safari said.