/ 15 February 2002

The proposals in brief

Eastern Cape: Rhodes University and the University of Fort Hare to merge, with a main base in East London. The merged university to take over the University of Transkei’s (Unitra) medical school; the rest of Unitra to close. University of Port Elizabeth and Port Elizabeth Technikon to merge; so too Border Technikon and Eastern Cape Technikon.

Free State: University of the Free State and Technikon Free State to remain separate and independent.

Gauteng: Rand Afrikaans University, the University of the Witwatersrand, Pretoria University, Technikon Witwatersrand and Vaal Triangle Technikon to be retained as separate and independent; Technikon Northern Gauteng, Technikon North-West and Technikon Pretoria to merge.

KwaZulu-Natal: Universities of Durban-Westville and Natal to merge; University of Zululand to refocus and offer technikon-type courses; ML Sultan Technikon and Technikon Natal, already merging, to be joined by Mangosuthu Technikon.

Northern Province: The universities of the North and Venda and the Medical University of South Africa to merge.

North West: The universities of Potchefstroom and the North West to merge.

Western Cape: Cape Technikon and the universities of Cape Town and Stellenbosch to remain separate and independent; University of the Western Cape and Peninsula Technikon to merge.

Overall: Vista University campuses to be incorporated into various neighbouring institutions. The merger between Unisa, Technikon SA and Vista’s Distance Education Centre, currently on hold pending Unisa’s high court challenge to details of the merger, did not fall within the working group’s terms of reference.