Addressing stakeholders at the University of Mpumalanga, Nsfas CEO, Andile Nongogo expained that previously, Nsfas was not involved in the accreditation process of student accommodation. The process included looking at increasing capacity and how students are placed in accommodation that is conducive in order for them to succeed.
Nongogo revealed that Nsfas spends around R13 billion on student accommodation per year and should therefore have a significant influence on how the funds are spent.
This is why, in order to improve the student accommodation model, Nsfas has decided to take a more proactive role in student accommodation for its beneficiaries and has already held several engagements with the relevant stakeholders such as students, student leadership, institutions, and accommodation providers to discuss how improvements can be made.
Furthermore, the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) Minister, Blade Nzimande, has also been meeting with stakeholders with regard to Nsfas plans to implement direct payments across the system for 2023 and to implement a new system for the management of student accommodation.
During a committee meeting, DHET Director-General Dr Nkosinathi Sishi reported that the Ministerial Task Team (MTT) consultations were conducted by Nsfas on student accommodation norms and standards and the input gathered from the consultations involved the improvement of TVET student accommodation.
In another effort to improve the issue of student accommodation, the department has revised its student accommodation contracts with the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) to ensure the contract allows for closer oversight and monitoring by the DHET.
“This is to swiftly deal with student accommodation problems. In cases where it is not happy with how institutions work with the student accommodation issue, DHET works with NSFAS to ensure that students are paid directly when this is desirable and there is agreement between stakeholders.” said Dr Sishi
There were also concerns about third parties receiving funds from students but providing poor services and Dr Sishi acknowledged that this is a problem, and to make improvements, the department will use the initiatives reported on by Minister Nzimande.
