Abdullah Munawwar Al-Jameeli Al-Madinah I have received many letters from male and female Saudi students complaining about the low monthly allowance they get. They said the allowance does not meet the least of their needs. The suffering students have raised their sad voices for many years in their universities, meetings, blogs and messages, but there has been no response. The allowance these students receive is no longer sufficient to buy textbooks whose prices have doubled. In addition, the allowance is insufficient for transport to and from the university. It is also not enough to cover the rent which students have to pay for an apartment as they come from other cities and governorates. Believe me when I tell you that a number of students have told me that they sometimes resort to begging to meet their needs. They see this as better than stealing, God forbid! As a number of Saudi families are complaining about low salaries and limited income, it has become an urgent need to increase the allowance of male and female Saudi university students, not only to pay for their educational expenses, but to help their families secure their daily bread. The Ministry of Higher Education has approved allowances for members of the teaching staff and they do deserve to receive an allowance for university education, rare specializations and computers in some universities. Everything has been increased except the stipend for university students! If the budget of the Ministry of Higher Education cannot bear an increase in student allowances, then there should be a decrease in university conferences and symposia and the money saved should be diverted to support male and female students. If that is impossible, then universities in cooperation with banks must provide monthly loans to male and female students which they can pay back after graduating and getting jobs. Something must be done because keeping the university student allowance at this level means that life is impossible for students and that they may be forced to resort to begging to meet their needs.
