Lupane State University to relocate by June

By The Standard and Newsday | Feb. 17, 2015

LUPANE State University will relocate from its temporary base in Bulawayo by June, barring any financial constraints that have delayed moving the institution to Matabeleland North.

NQOBANI NDLOVU STAFF REPORTER

Funding challenges have been blamed for hampering plans to relocate the university from its rented Bulawayo premises, nearly 10 years after it opened its doors for the first intake.

Higher and Tertiary Education deputy minister Godfrey Gandawa, however, said measures had been put in place to ensure that students were relocated at the beginning June.

“We have put all measures in place to make sure that we relocate our students from Bulawayo to Lupane by June this year,” Gandawa told Senators last week, according to the Parliamentary Hansard.

“We had some challenges because we were supposed to have moved them by July last year, but due to financial challenges, we could not finish our hostels.”

Gandawa was responding to a question by Senator Thokozile Mathuthu on when LSU would be relocated from its Bulawayo premises to its site nearly 170km away.

“However, I can advise this House that the hostels are near completion,” Gandawa said.

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“We are now trying to sort out accommodation for lecturers and supporting staff.

“That is the challenge we are now facing.

He added: “We are in discussion with our sister Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, they have houses there meant for civil servants.

“We are having discussions with them so that they can assist us while we construct our own houses.

“I am very sure that by June this year, we will be able to at least move the faculty of agriculture to Lupane.”

Acting LSU vice-chancellor Getrude Nyakutse last year said the institution had purchased residential stands for its academic and non-academic staff as it began a phased process of relocating to Matabeleland North province.