Students of the American University of Beirut have called for a tuition strike after the administration adopted a new dollar exchange rate last month, equal to a 160 per cent rise in annual fees.
They launched the “We won’t pay” campaign, urging students not to pay the tuition fees that are due on February 5, which have become largely unaffordable for many in the crisis-hit nation.
"I may be putting my education at risk because I only have one semester left before I graduate, but I will not pay the full tuition," Karim Saadeh, treasurer of AUB's Student Faculty Committee, told The National.
In a race against time, student leaders hope the strike will delay payments so the government can pass a new law capping tuition rises in private universities. Lebanon's legislators are, however, notoriously slow to act.
Students have been protesting against the increase in tuition fee at AUB, Lebanon's leading university, over the past month, but a three-week Covid-19 lockdown beginning on Thursday may limit their ability to mobilise before the fees are due. Demonstrations have sometimes turned violent and the standoff with the administration has intensified in the past few weeks.
The Lebanese-American University adopted the 3,900 lira rate shortly after the AUB and others are expected to follow suit.
Students say the new rates jeopardise their access to higher education, one of Lebanon’s last functioning sectors and a field that the country has long been renowned for in the region. They are asking for the state to regulate private university fees before students are forced to drop out.
"This is the last chance for the government to intervene," said Jad El Hani, of the AUB Secular Club.
Mr El Hani said student leaders had met caretaker Minister of Education Tarek Majzoub seeking action, but to no effect. A bill limiting the fee rises was set to be discussed when parliament last convened in December, but it was the last item on the agenda and the session ended before it was reached.
Student leaders said the AUB administration did not consult them before increasing fees, and has not responded to requests to meet student representatives to discuss the issue.
A financial crisis largely triggered by a shortage of foreign currencies has devalued the Lebanese pound, now worth about 8,500 to the American dollar on the black market.
As a result, AUB President Fadlo Khuri announced last month that tuition fees, calculated in dollars, must be paid at a rate of 3,900 lira to the dollar instead of the official, but mostly abandoned, rate of 1,515 lira to the dollar.
Mr Khuri said the decision was necessary “for the financial survival of AUB”.
The university's Interim Provost Dr Lina Choueiri said there were plans to help those hardest hit by the fee rise by distributing an additional $20 million in financial aid for the spring semester, funded in part by tuition revenue. More aid has already been distributed to needy students.
“Before the end of December, a first batch of over 2,400 AUB students have been notified of a notable increase in their financial aid support for the spring term,” Dr Choueiri said.
Students, however, are wary of the university’s financial aid system, which they say is influenced by the sectarian parties that rule the country, and cannot support all those in need.
“A lot of what happens in the country is reflected in the university,” Mr Saadeh said.
“The university’s plan is to increase the financial aid budget. But students don’t trust this system and they don’t believe it will help everyone regardless of sect, connections and party-affiliations.”
Mr Saadeh said he could have been granted financial aid in his first year of university, but turned down the offer in protest against the way aid was being distributed.
Dr Choueiri denied the claims. "AUB is committed to the principle of equal opportunity in education in which any kind of discrimination is not tolerated," she told The National in an email. "This principle governs a wide range of generous financial assistance options, managed under stringent, fully audited processes that are overseen by the Office of Financial Aid and a committee including representatives from each faculty to prevent any undue influence.”
For the first time in post-war Lebanon, independent students won university elections last year, bolstered by an anti-government protest movement that began in October 2019. They have accused Lebanon’s sectarian political system, which is widely seen as corrupt, of fomenting the current economic crisis and hijacking their future.
Tanios El Kassis of the Parents and University Students Union said he refused to pay the tuition of his son, a student at AUB, and that suggesting parents should rely on financial aid was humiliating. The Union has called for AUB and LAU to revert to the official dollar exchange rate.
“AUB is not behaving like it is based in Lebanon. Can’t they see the economic situation here is terrible? Can’t they see that people have lost their jobs, and 60 per cent of Lebanese are now poor?” said Mr El Kassis.
The Union plans to meet Mr Majzoub again in the coming days, alongside student leaders, to push for the state to take action as the deadline for paying tuition fees approaches.
“As parents, we are doing this for our kids who want to stay in Lebanon. The ruling thugs want young people to leave so that they can continue to govern us. Even worse, they want to deprive them of their education,” Mr El Kassis said.
“We are not begging for help. We have the solution and we want it to be implemented.”
The years Ramadan fell in May
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
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- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More on Quran memorisation:
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
As You Were
Liam Gallagher
(Warner Bros)
What drives subscription retailing?
Once the domain of newspaper home deliveries, subscription model retailing has combined with e-commerce to permeate myriad products and services.
The concept has grown tremendously around the world and is forecast to thrive further, according to UnivDatos Market Insights’ report on recent and predicted trends in the sector.
The global subscription e-commerce market was valued at $13.2 billion (Dh48.5bn) in 2018. It is forecast to touch $478.2bn in 2025, and include the entertainment, fitness, food, cosmetics, baby care and fashion sectors.
The report says subscription-based services currently constitute “a small trend within e-commerce”. The US hosts almost 70 per cent of recurring plan firms, including leaders Dollar Shave Club, Hello Fresh and Netflix. Walmart and Sephora are among longer established retailers entering the space.
UnivDatos cites younger and affluent urbanites as prime subscription targets, with women currently the largest share of end-users.
That’s expected to remain unchanged until 2025, when women will represent a $246.6bn market share, owing to increasing numbers of start-ups targeting women.
Personal care and beauty occupy the largest chunk of the worldwide subscription e-commerce market, with changing lifestyles, work schedules, customisation and convenience among the chief future drivers.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2
Vinicius Junior (71') Mariano (90 2')
Barcelona 0
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Timeline
1947
Ferrari’s road-car company is formed and its first badged car, the 125 S, rolls off the assembly line
1962
250 GTO is unveiled
1969
Fiat becomes a Ferrari shareholder, acquiring 50 per cent of the company
1972
The Fiorano circuit, Ferrari’s racetrack for development and testing, opens
1976
First automatic Ferrari, the 400 Automatic, is made
1987
F40 launched
1988
Enzo Ferrari dies; Fiat expands its stake in the company to 90 per cent
2002
The Enzo model is announced
2010
Ferrari World opens in Abu Dhabi
2011
First four-wheel drive Ferrari, the FF, is unveiled
2013
LaFerrari, the first Ferrari hybrid, arrives
2014
Fiat Chrysler announces the split of Ferrari from the parent company
2015
Ferrari launches on Wall Street
2017
812 Superfast unveiled; Ferrari celebrates its 70th anniversary
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
WITHIN%20SAND
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Moe%20Alatawi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Ra%E2%80%99ed%20Alshammari%2C%20Adwa%20Fahd%2C%20Muhand%20Alsaleh%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full
1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
THE SPECS
2020 Toyota Corolla Hybrid LE
Engine: 1.8 litre combined with 16-volt electric motors
Transmission: Automatic with manual shifting mode
Power: 121hp
Torque: 142Nm
Price: Dh95,900
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces
- Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
- Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
- Keep the colour palette the same in a room, but combine different tones and textures in different zone. A common accent colour dotted throughout the space brings it together.
- Don’t be afraid to use furniture to break up the space. For example, if you have a sofa placed in the middle of the room, a console unit behind it will give good punctuation.
- Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
MATCH DETAILS
Manchester United 3
Greenwood (21), Martial (33), Rashford (49)
Partizan Belgrade 0
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Blah
Started: 2018
Founder: Aliyah Al Abbar and Hend Al Marri
Based: Dubai
Industry: Technology and talent management
Initial investment: Dh20,000
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 40
Top 5 concerns globally:
1. Unemployment
2. Spread of infectious diseases
3. Fiscal crises
4. Cyber attacks
5. Profound social instability
Top 5 concerns in the Mena region
1. Energy price shock
2. Fiscal crises
3. Spread of infectious diseases
4. Unmanageable inflation
5. Cyber attacks
Source: World Economic Foundation
