Central Province Permanent Secretary, Milner Mwanakampwe says the protests by students at the Kabwe Institute of Technology (KIT)  is due to the failure by the management to engage the students on time over the variation in meal allowances.

Mr Mwanakampwe has since directed KIT management to sit with the students and various local authorities to address the issue so that there is harmonisation.

Constituency Development Fund (CDF) funded students at the KIT yesterday took to the streets to protest the reduction in meal allowances from K1,000 per month last year to K600 per month this year purporting siphoning of the money by the management at the institution.

Mr Mwanakampwe, who confirmed the development to the media, said the problem was communication breakdown and has advised the management to as a matter of urgency engage with the sponsoring local authorities and students to ensure harmony reigns.

He explained that last year KIT would bill each sponsoring local authority fees payable to the institution and another K9,000 rewarding each student with a K,1000 in meal allowance per month.

Mr Mwanakampwe however, said most local authorities did not send students to the institute because of the high meal allowances that they were quoting.

He added that this year, the institute has reduced the meal allowance payable to each student from K9,000 per year to K5,500 per year and consequently reducing the monetary gain per student from K1,000 per month to K500 per month.