IN CONVERSATION WITH SIYABONGA MOSES NKAMBAKO- PRESIDENT OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN UNION OF STUDENTS(SAUS)
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More than 40,000 students across 76 higher education institutions were improperly funded by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), with the value of the funding estimated at about R5.1 billion.
The figure, which dates back to findings by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), has now become part of a broader investigation by Public Protector Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka into what she describes as possible systemic maladministration in South Africa’s student financial aid system.
Gcaleka has issued a Section 7(9) notice setting out her preliminary findings and proposed remedial action. The notice gives NSFAS, the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), universities, TVET colleges and other affected parties an opportunity to respond before the Public Protector finalises the investigation.
The R5.1 billion figure was previously reported by the SIU after its investigation into NSFAS under Proclamation R88 of 2022. In 2023, the SIU told Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts that 40,044 students across 76 institutions had been “unduly funded”. The SIU said many of the affected students appeared to have household incomes above the NSFAS threshold and that, in some cases, the means test could not properly be conducted because parental information had not been submitted.
The SIU investigation was authorised to examine allegations of maladministration, improper conduct and financial losses involving NSFAS, including the allocation of bursaries and loans.
The figure, which dates back to findings by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), has now become part of a broader investigation by Public Protector Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka into what she describes as possible systemic maladministration in South Africa’s student financial aid system.
Gcaleka has issued a Section 7(9) notice setting out her preliminary findings and proposed remedial action. The notice gives NSFAS, the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), universities, TVET colleges and other affected parties an opportunity to respond before the Public Protector finalises the investigation.
The R5.1 billion figure was previously reported by the SIU after its investigation into NSFAS under Proclamation R88 of 2022. In 2023, the SIU told Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts that 40,044 students across 76 institutions had been “unduly funded”. The SIU said many of the affected students appeared to have household incomes above the NSFAS threshold and that, in some cases, the means test could not properly be conducted because parental information had not been submitted.
The SIU investigation was authorised to examine allegations of maladministration, improper conduct and financial losses involving NSFAS, including the allocation of bursaries and loans.
