MoE Freezes Assets of Nine Ethiopian Public Universities
The Ministry of Education just put a hold on assets at nine Ethiopian public universities. It’s part of a broader shift towards giving these universities more control over their operations.
Ethiopian Minister of Education, Berhanu Nega, signed off on the decision, which comes with clear rules. After freezing the assets of these nine Ethiopian public universities, they can’t:
- Sell off any assets
- Take on new debt
- Sign major construction contracts
- Enter into big procurement deals
Basically, it’s a pause button. The goal is to keep things steady during this transition towards being autonomous.
On November 10, 2018 (Ethiopian Calendar), Ethiopian Minister of Education Prof. Berhanu Nega wrote a letter to all nine universities that began this process. The message was: “Slow down on anything that may bring the university under scrutiny beyond what it does on a day-to-day basis, at least until the final verdict on the readiness for autonomy.
But the letter didn’t end there. It also established regulations on how these universities can use their assets. The university’s rights, property, and land cannot be transferred to another party. This includes both leasing and selling.
Below are nine Ethiopian public universities currently under this freeze.
- University of Gondar
- Bahir Dar University
- Jimma University
- Haramaya University
- Adama Science And Technology University
- Addis Ababa Science and Technology University
- Arba Minch University
- Hawassa University
- Mekelle University
The Ethiopian Ministry isn’t just freezing assets. It’s already appointed interim presidents for three of these Ethiopian public universities.
- University of Gondar
- Jimma University
- Addis Ababa Science and Technology University
These aren’t permanent appointments. The plan is to fill the top jobs through a competitive process.
These nine Ethiopian public universities should meet the autonomy transition guidelines at 60% or above. These universities will be granted autonomy within the next three months. Once these universities gain autonomy, they’ll need to figure out their own revenue. And for this, these universities may increase the tuition fees.
If tuition becomes the main source of income, students from lower-income families may not be able to gain admission to these Ethiopian public universities. That’s the tension education officials will need to manage carefully going forward.
