The phenomenon of "ticket-free days" (JST), already observed at UCAD and UGB, has reached UASZ. Master's students, organized into a collective, have attempted to implement ticket-free days since Monday. They are protesting against reforms to the scholarship payment system and demanding the payment of their arrears.

This group of Master's students attempted to stage a 48-hour strike to make their voices heard. However, their initiative met with a firm response from the authorities. On the instructions of the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (MESRI), the CROUS/Z management decided to close the only functioning restaurant on campus, while also announcing the postponement of the opening of the second restaurant until further notice.

In a statement signed by Dr. Salif Baldé, director of CROUS/Z, it was specified that the warning issued to stop these free meal schemes had not been sufficient. "Despite the official warning given to students this morning, a group of students once again forced their way into the university restaurant today, at lunchtime, to proclaim a 'No Meals Day' (JST), disrupting the normal operation of the catering service," the document states.

For the management of the Ziguinchor Regional Centre for University Social Works, such practices compromise the material, financial and human efforts deployed to ensure a quality service for the benefit of the students of Assane Seck University.

Faced with non-compliance with the guidelines, the administration has decided to implement the drastic measure mandated by the supervisory authority. "In accordance with the instructions of the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (MESRI), the CROUS/Z administration has decided to close the university restaurant until further notice," reads the final statement. This decision risks having serious consequences for the social and academic climate on the UASZ campus.