The former Minister of education Emmanuel Mudidi expressed his concerns over the policy defining how freshly graduated university students should be paying the loan contracted during their schooling.
According to the new law scheme, all concerned students are required to pay the loan soon after the graduation. The law in making expects all the employed to pay back the loan as soon as they have recognized jobs.
However, MPs urge that the freshly graduates are not financially fit to be able to sustain their needs and, according to the law, pay the loan as well.
For them, it would be helpful and up-building to uplift this loan for six months as to help them cope with life burdening realities.
Hon Mudidi Emmanuel reminded the Ministry of education delegates that the after-school life is one of the most challenging ones and if this law is enforced, it will hinder the fresh graduates to effectively integrate the new life.
The new loan payment scheme stipulates that the student has to start the payment after seven days after job acquisition.
Both Hon Mukayisenga and Hon John Ruku Rwabyoma found the scheme very burdening to the fresh graduates and urged for an extended loan payment period so that the students might be financially able to sustain themselves during this ‘hard period’.
Hon John Ruku Rwabyoma advocates for at least six months minima for the students to start the loan payment.
This period is long enough for the students to get prepared.
One of the worries highlighted by the Ministry of education pertains to the misuse of the loan provided to the student.
Minister of education Dr Papias Malimba Musafiri argued that one of the preventive measures to avoid this, is to pay the fees to all consumed services instead of giving the cash to the concerned students.
Some of the activities that the Ministry of education intends to help students regulate their schooling activities include payment of learning tools such as laptops, library and school fees.
Despite this new incentive, every student who will dodge schooling due to unreported reason will be bound to pay the rest of the pending amount, the scheme stipulates.
UM– USEKE.RW
