Bindura — Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE) is pressing ahead with the construction of a 352-bed hostel for male students, a project that forms part of a broader accommodation expansion drive aimed at easing the persistent housing shortage that has forced the majority of students to seek off-campus lodging.

The boys’ hostel is the second phase of a larger student housing project that has already delivered a completed girls’ hostel of similar capacity, along with dining facilities and warden houses.

Mr F. Kamutando, BUSE Director of Works, said the project is targeting 60 percent completion by the end of the year. Should construction progress ahead of schedule, roofing works will be completed before the year ends.

The university, which opened its doors on 26 March 1996 with an intake of 125 students in response to the Government’s drive to address the shortage of science teachers, currently has an enrolment of approximately 9,000 to 9,999 students.

BUSE offers programmes across five faculties — Science Education, Science and Engineering, Agriculture and Environmental Science, Commerce, and Social Sciences and Humanities.

Despite its growth over nearly three decades, on-campus accommodation has remained severely constrained. The institution currently houses only 398 students across two halls of residence, leaving the vast majority to fend for themselves in private rentals in surrounding suburbs.

“Previously students were staying on campus and the majority off campus,” Mr Kamutando said. “Upon completion, the 352 beds will significantly ease accommodation challenges for students who do not have options to stay off campus.”

Minister of State for Presidential Affairs in charge of Implementation and Monitoring Dr Joram Gumbo, who toured the completed girls’ hostel, previously called on all universities to provide adequate student accommodation, particularly for female students “who are prone to abuse”.

The university is also constructing a 1,200-bed hostel through a public-private partnership with the Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe.