The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) says it has initiated a remedial process where students, who are found to have been funded based on incorrect information, are immediately defunded.
NSFAS said this is done to avoid wrongful and illegal allocation of funds to students, who fall outside the prescription of the entity’s policies.
“The prescriptions of our policies and the law will be implemented firmly and vigorously to avoid a repeat of the more than R5 billion that was allocated incorrectly to students since 2016,” NSFAS said.
The NSFAS decision is in response to the Auditor-General’s findings and a Special Investigation Unit (SIU) investigation, which revealed that more than R5 billion was paid to the students who did not qualify for bursaries.
The SIU draft presentation was presented to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA).
The lead investigator told the committee that 76 institutions, including 40 044 students, did not qualify for bursaries from 2018 to 2021.
However, the scheme has acknowledged that it has received complaints from some students, who were defunded incorrectly, and said “if such cases are true, this is regrettable”.
“A process of verifying these complaints will be immediately initiated and if proven otherwise, remedial action will be taken,” NSFAS said.
During a meeting held with the South African Students Congress (SASCO) leadership this past Sunday, and an engagement with the South African Union of Students (SAUS), NSFAS assured students that its board and management remains committed to a student-centred model, in which the main focus is the creation of an environment for students to engage in academic activities without the inconvenience of lack.
“Where we encounter obstacles related to our systems and capacity, all appropriate efforts will be made to achieve improvements.
“Where needed, engagements will continue to be made with the relevant stakeholders and this will be done with the objective of receiving valuable inputs in improving our service to students and in full observance of our policies and the law,” NSFAS said.
In carrying out these objectives, NSFAS said it will not be influenced by squabbles amongst service providers, or parties that seek to “grandstand” for reasons other than the interests of the students.
“NSFAS will proceed with implementing new policy decisions in a manner that is firm, legal and within the dictates of her policies,” NSFAS said.
Investigation over excessive charges
Meanwhile, NSFAS said an investigation will be conducted following students’ complaints about excessive charges.
Student leadership has also complained about inaccessibility of service providers, lack of clarity on how to access funds, and allegations of funds not reaching their intended beneficiaries.
“Where the allegations are proven true, appropriate action will be taken,” the scheme said.
NSFAS said the service providers will be instructed to increase their physical presence at institutions of higher learning so that they can respond directly to student queries on direct payments.
“There should be an immediate enhancement of explanations on how students can access their funds to avoid delays in the distribution of allowances, and there will be a three-way meeting between student leaders, NSFAS management and the service providers on 11 July to iron out all relevant matters,” NSFAS said.