Students of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) have raised strong concerns over exorbitant private hostel fees, stressing that soaring accommodation costs are severely impacting their education.
Members of the University’s University Hall (Katanga) morale group, after performing at the National Youth Conference organised by the National Youth Authority and held at KNUST, brandished placards to draw the attention of government authorities to their plight.
Placards held by the students bore messages such as “Reduce hostel fees now!” “We came to learn, not to sleep, #Reduce hostel prices,” and “Hostel fees are now more expensive than our school fees, why? #KNUST students deserve better.”
Speaking on behalf of the students, the morale group leader, identified as Obrane, a final-year Agricultural Engineering student, decried the financial strain placed on parents and students alike.
He noted that despite interventions from the Rent Control Department, private hostel owners have largely ignored regulatory guidance.
“Everybody wants their children to enrol in university; if the hostel prices are more expensive than the university school fees, then it’s unfortunate,” Obrane said, appealing to the media to highlight their struggle.
“The hostel owners want to exhibit that their power supersedes the government… We came to school to learn and not to sleep,” he bemoaned.
Addressing the issue at the conference, the Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment, George Opare Addo, pledged government intervention to address the pricing pressures.
”I want to assure them that as Minister for Youth Development and Empowerment, I will take up this issue with the Minister for Education and the appropriate authorities that are responsible for controlling rent in this country,” Opare Addo stated.
“We are a country of laws, and we must allow our laws to work,” he said, stating: “No single individual is bigger or greater than the laws of this country.”
The minister added that the Ministry of Education is actively negotiating with private developers to build affordable on-campus housing, pointing to the administration’s broader policy agenda aimed at expanding student accommodation across tertiary institutions.
“We will have the necessary conversations with owners of hostels and make sure that prices are reasonable for the dear students of this country,” Opare Addo noted.
“As part of our manifesto promise, we promised the ‘Bed for All’ agenda, so we will continue to pursue it and make sure that there are more than enough beds for students on campuses,” he reiterated.
Source: classfmonline.com
