Information Minister Michael Makuei has said that the council of ministers in its meeting on Friday approved over SSP 61 billion to cater for the pay rise of lecturers and support staff at public universities.

Public university lecturers, especially those at the universities of Bahr el Ghazal, Upper Nile, and Rumbek, have intermittently been striking and downing their tools since September last year to demand improved pay and allowances in line with a cabinet resolution three years ago.

Makuei, while addressing the media after Friday’s cabinet meeting, acknowledged that indeed the council of ministers approved the pay rise for lecturers a while back but that it was never implemented.

“It is worth mentioning that about three years ago we had approved an increase in the salaries of the lecturers and other support staff in the universities and higher institutions of learning,” he said. “Now with inflation, things have gone far and they are requesting that their salaries should be reconsidered bearing in mind that at present, lecturers at the universities are people who are free to move anywhere. So, we fear that in case we do not do anything, then definitely there will be a brain drain.”

According to Makuei, the finance minister has been directed to effect the implementation of the resolution of the cabinet regarding the lecturers’ pay increment.

“The Cabinet approved the increment in the salary of the teaching staff of the universities and their support staff to the sum of SSP 61,352,960,064 and the minister of finance is directed to coordinate with the minister of higher education so that they see how best it can be included,” he said. “So, the minister of finance was instructed to put that into action and if possible they will see how best they will be paying these people, and cabinet passed that.”