Unisa splurged R7m on a two-day event which formed part of the national dialogue and which was addressed by President Cyril Ramaphosa at the institution in August.
Catering and décor made up more than R2m and just under R2m of the total respectively, while IT services cost R1m.
This was revealed in a parliamentary response by deputy president Paul Mashatile to a question by the MK Party’s Visvin Reddy.
Mashatile also revealed that the National Treasury had been requested to release R42m towards the dialogue’s first national convention, held on August 15, which included capacitating the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) as the dialogue’s secretariat.
In his response, Mashatile broke down the costs incurred by Unisa — which at the height of the uncertainty surrounding the dialogue donated its conference centre as venue.
Unisa saw this [as] an opportunity to continue to play a role and contribute towards the building of the future South Africa we all envisage
Though this donation reduced financial pressure on the country’s coffers, it appears this sacrifice came at a huge price for the university.
The costs involved in hosting the event included —
- R1.95m on the conference venue, including marquees and décor;
- More than R2.28m on catering;
- R550,000 for document printing and branding;
- R80,000 for ablution facilities;
- R787,500 for conference packs;
- R18,000 for ushers;
- R1m for Wi-Fi, IT and audiovisuals;
- R250,000 for the operations centre; and
- R300,000 for rapporteur services
In response to questions from the Sunday Times, Unisa said the expenditure was justifiable and did not disadvantage its financially needy students.
“[Unisa] is of the firm view that our financial contribution to the first national convention was not excessive but was justifiable given the length of the convention and the number of delegates hosted over [its] two days,” the university said.
Unisa said the magnitude of the national dialogue was significant enough for it to have spent more than R7m of its own money on it, and this had been done in the national interest.
“As a critical national asset that has been at the forefront of the shaping of the country for [more than] 150 years, Unisa saw this [as] an opportunity to continue to play a role and contribute towards the building of the future South Africa we all envisage,” the university said.
“We are confident that our decision to collaborate with the social partners in this great national initiative was the correct one.”
Unisa argued that the expenditure “did not in any way diminish our commitment to assisting students in need of financial assistance”.
“The university has in place programmes deliberately designed to provide financial support to students, especially those who have completed their qualifications and are unable to graduate,” it said.
“This year alone, the university, in collaboration with its donor partners, has funded approximately 5,156 students at an approximate cost of R100m. The mission to assist students will continue through various efforts, including donor funding, contributions of Unisa alumni, and initiatives such as golf days and fundraising campaigns similar to the ones currently run by our convocation and national student representative council structures.”
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