‘FAKE INTERNSHIPS’: A teachers’ union said that Swazi students had been forced to work in factories that reportedly paid their wages as ‘donations’ to their school

Taipei Times
Date: May 31, 2020
By: Staff Writer, with CNA

The Ministry of Education (MOE) on Thursday said that it would investigate allegations by a teachers’ union that students from Eswatini, the nation’s only diplomatic ally in Africa, had been forced into exploitative “internships” after enrolling in a work-study program at Mingdao University in Changhua County.

The ministry said that in 2018, the university had recruited about 40 students for a four-year work-study scholarship program, promising them the opportunity to develop off-campus work skills and experience while completing a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

In a recruitment brochure, the university offered applicants a range of financial inducements, while touting the program as “ultra-affordable.”

In November 2018, Swazi media reported that the students were being forced to work 40 hours per week peeling chicken skins in a refrigerated factory in exchange for their lessons and accommodation.    [FULL  STORY]