South Africa president to meet students protesting planned tuition hike

South Africa's President Jacob Zuma said Thursday he will meet student leaders and university authorities on Friday to discuss planned hikes in tuition fees that have sparked a week of nationwide protests, some of which have turned violent.

Critics say the tuition increases would further disadvantage black students, who are already underrepresented in the country’s university system.

Zuma has not spoken publicly about the protests before, and on Wednesday students stormed the parliament precinct in Cape Town to try to disrupt the reading of Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene's interim budget. He was stony-faced throughout Nene's speech as chaos raged outside.

“Nobody disagrees with the message that students from poor households are facing financial difficulties and possible exclusion,” Zuma said in a statement on Thursday, referring to plans for fees to rise as much as 11.5 percent. 

Nene told Reuters on Wednesday that a process to take money from other skills development funds and move them to university education was already under way, but did not elaborate.

At least 15 of South Africa's universities have seen protests since they broke out on Oct. 13 at Johannesburg's University of the Witwatersrand, and have been dubbed #FeesMustFall on Twitter.

The average tuition fee for a first-year undergraduate student studying humanities at Wits, a top South African university, is between $2,200 and $3,200 this year, according to the university.

Students who register for the first time also make a onetime payment of $730. The cost of textbooks and accommodation adds to the financial burden of university enrollment. These fees are difficult for many students and their families to meet.

Three students were hurt during Wednesday's rally in the Eastern Cape as protesters threw stones and burning tires and police fired rubber bullets and stun grenades.

It was not clear what caused their injuries. At least 30 students were arrested.

Universities say they need higher fees to keep up standards and they urged the government to find the extra money. The government, which subsidizes universities, said it could not afford the free education that students are demanding.

Wire services