Page 24 - UniZulu Annual Report 2020

spaces (ensuring social distancing and replenishing of sanitisers in hallways) during the year under review. Cooperation between faculties, the Protection Services Department (PSD) and the Housing Department (HD) has ensured a smooth return of students to all residences in line with regulations.
Student Governance
The University recognises the critical role played by student governance and development in ensuring that democratic processes are discharged. The University also recognises the critical role that students play in the drive to deepen democracy and broaden transformation among the different communities in South Africa. Student Governance and Development supports these various societies in ensuring that these are in good standing. Workshops for capacity building are conducted for the societies to enable them to deliver according to their specific plans of action. Each society is allocated from the societies’ levy to implement its plans of action. Leadership forums on matters of interest are usually conducted to get broad buy-in from the societies and to ensure shared attributions on institutional matters pertaining to transformation. Faculty councils also participate in faculty Board meetings, which ensure that student voices are heard and academic issues raised. Students were trained on student leadership encapsulating, inter alia, budgeting and development of operational plans for student activities during the year under review.
Council resolved to implement an electronic voting system for the SRC elections to mitigate litigious risks that have been associated with SRC elections for the last decade. Revisions of the SRC Constitution was approved and an Electoral Committee (EC) for the 2020/2021 SRC
elections were appointed, which took place on 3 December 2020. Preliminary results were published on 4 December 2021 subject to appeals and objections were forwarded to the EC who requested an investigation into the allegations. The matter was addressed at Council, which resolved to appoint an ‘interim student structure’ comprising 12 students representing various student structures until the finalisation of the 2020/2021 SRC elections. The interim structure as constituted has full powers, duties and functions of an SRC Administrator conferred on it in accordance with the SRC Constitution. Two students were appointed by the interim students’ structure to serve on Council as the ‘Convenor’ and ‘Coordinator’, substituting student representation on Council.
The University experienced violent student unrest in March 2020 due to discontent regarding funding from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). This resulted in significant damage to campus infrastructure and vehicles. A meeting between the University, the HET Minister and student political representatives were held in Durban to amicably settle the matter.
Student Health
The purpose of First Things First (FTF) is health awareness and the rendition of services beneficial to students. Various services were embarked upon during the year under review, including: primary healthcare, HIV testing and treatment, tuberculosis screening, diabetes screening, antiretroviral treatment roll-out, pre-exposure prophylaxis roll-out, sexually transmitted infection screening and treatment, gender-based violence awareness and reproductive health.
The University managed to host Dr Sandile Tshabalala, the Head of the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health (DoH), who addressed First Time Entering Students (FTENS) on
UNIVERSITY OF ZULULAND ANNUAL REPORT 2020
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