On September 26, 2025, the Democratic Alliance demanded urgent action as NSFAS failures left over 500 students facing eviction in Kimberley, with landlords unpaid for over a year and a R10.6 billion funding gap unresolved.
When student evictions, the forced removal of university students from campus or off-campus housing due to unpaid fees, policy changes, or lack of legal protection. Also known as student displacement, it’s not just a housing issue—it’s a crisis that cuts deep into education access, dignity, and social justice. In countries like South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya, students are being kicked out of rooms they’ve paid for, sometimes with no notice, no warning, and no place to go. This isn’t rare. It’s systemic.
Behind every eviction notice is a broken system. university housing, on-campus accommodation managed by institutions that often prioritize revenue over student welfare is overcrowded, underfunded, and increasingly treated like a business. Meanwhile, housing rights, the legal and moral claim students have to safe, affordable, and stable living conditions while studying are ignored or erased by policies that favor landlords over learners. Students who can’t pay late fees—sometimes because their NSFAS or bursary payments are delayed—are labeled defaulters, not victims. And when they’re evicted, they’re not just losing a room. They’re losing their chance to finish school.
It’s not just about rent. It’s about power. In South Africa, student protests over evictions in 2022 and 2023 forced universities to pause removals—temporarily. In Nigeria, students in Lagos and Abuja have camped outside government buildings after being thrown out by private landlords who refuse to honor lease agreements. In Kenya, universities have quietly stopped offering dorms to first-year students, pushing them into unsafe, overpriced rentals. These aren’t isolated incidents. They’re connected by the same truth: education is being priced out of reach.
What’s missing? Accountability. Clear laws. And real solutions. There are no national standards protecting students from eviction in most African countries. No emergency housing funds. No legal aid for those caught in the gap between tuition deadlines and financial aid disbursements. And yet, students keep showing up—sleeping in libraries, staying with friends, walking miles to class—just to finish their degrees.
Below, you’ll find real stories from across the continent: students who lost their homes because of a missed payment, activists who fought back, and universities that finally listened. These aren’t just headlines. They’re lives on the line. And they’re happening right now.
On September 26, 2025, the Democratic Alliance demanded urgent action as NSFAS failures left over 500 students facing eviction in Kimberley, with landlords unpaid for over a year and a R10.6 billion funding gap unresolved.