The Solidariteitbeweging's private tertiary education institution Akademia will introduce a full-time campus in the Western Cape within the next two years.

Akademia, which is celebrating its twelfth year as an Afrikaans study institute this year, already has a presence in the Western Cape through centers in George, Paarl, and Somerset West. These centers are utilized by students studying through the meticulous distance learning model.

According to Marthinus Visser, managing director of the institution, the decision to further expand Akademia's full-time campus model, currently limited to Centurion in Gauteng, is based on thorough demographic research. According to these research findings, the Western Cape represents the largest concentration of Afrikaans speakers in South Africa.

"This reality directly speaks to the institution's raison d'être as an independent higher education institution closely linked to the Afrikaans language and cultural communities. […] Student life at Akademia aims to create a home where students' hearts and minds can develop integrally, and we are committed to, as is already the case at our campuses in Centurion, also investing in this development of well-rounded students in the Western Cape," says Martinus Visser, managing director of the institution.

The proposed campus will not only provide students access to Akademia's five existing faculties but also to a vibrant student life. According to Visser, students will be able to fully participate in this student life during their study years and develop their talents in such a way that they can live purposefully for the benefit of their community.

There are no established timelines for the opening of the new Western Cape campus yet, but according to Visser, work is already underway behind the scenes to meet the necessary infrastructure and capacity needs. The institution has already appointed an operations manager for the Western Cape. The search for a suitable location for the campus is currently underway.

Akademia inaugurated an additional full-time campus in Centurion this year and two new hostels were introduced. There are also plans to establish a comprehensive residential campus there by 2027 where 5,000 undergraduate and 2,000 postgraduate students can study.

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