The NSFAS presented its annual report to Parliament's portfolio committee on higher education and training on Wednesday. Funded students rose from 414,949 in 2016 to 451,507 for this academic year. A total of R12.4bn in financial aid was disbursed, with the lion's share of R10.3bn used to fund 225,950 students at the country's 26 public universities. The R2.1bn earmarked for college students was a 100% bursary.
NSFAS acting executive officer Lerato Nage said that since the ministerial review in 2010, the 2016-17 financial year was the most difficult in the history of the organisation.
Unlike in the past, when universities distributed allowances to students, the NSFAS rolled out the new model in 2017 wherein it gave funds directly to students. But the model came with a number of technology and communication challenges.
Nage said the NSFAS had satisfied only four of its seven strategic objectives, while only seven out of its 13 key performance indicators were attained.
The report highlighted that the body was unable to meet its targets for the disbursement of allowances to students within the normal seven-day period while it was also unable to meet its target for paying 100% of claims to institutions outside the student model by December 31.
The NSFAS attributed the delays to limited capacity, system configuration issues and late claims submissions.
Applications for financial aid for the 2018 academic year will close on 30 November.
Source: Business Day
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