NSFAS Faces R10.6-Billion Oversubscription, Leaving Thousands of Students Stranded
Education
5days ago
Newly appointed Minister of Higher Education and Training, Buti Manamela Pledges to Stabilise NSFAS and Rebuild Higher Education Sector
By GlobalZa
New Higher Education Minister Buti Manamela has promised to stabilize NSFAS within three months, rebuild trust in the sector, and launch sweeping reforms to align education with job market needs.
Manamela Pledges to Stabilise NSFAS and Rebuild Higher Education Sector
Newly appointed Minister of Higher Education and Training, Buti Manamela, has vowed to restore stability and trust in South Africa’s post-school education sector, with a particular focus on fixing the troubled National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) within the next three months.
Speaking during his first media briefing since taking over the portfolio, Manamela outlined six core reform objectives, including the establishment of a Post-School and Education Training (PSET) Reengineering Task Team and the development of a sustainable student funding model.
Manamela, who replaced Dr Nobuhle Nkabane following her removal by President Cyril Ramaphosa over a SETA board appointment scandal, said his immediate priority was to “get the department working” by engaging students, academics, vice-chancellors, labour, business, and quality councils.
“We need to rebuild relations with our social partners,” he said. “We must create a single, integrated system where community colleges feed into TVET colleges, universities, and ultimately the labour market.”
Fixing NSFAS and SETAs
Manamela acknowledged that both NSFAS and Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) were facing governance and operational challenges. He committed to a transparent process for appointing 21 new SETA chairpersons from over 1,000 applicants and to ensuring that SETAs work collaboratively rather than in silos.
On NSFAS, the minister said the aim was to ensure students have accommodation, receive allowances on time, and can study without uncertainty. He admitted there were serious issues affecting some students, particularly at UNISA and TVET colleges, but stressed that over 800,000 students are successfully funded monthly.
Measures include filling senior management vacancies, enhancing data security, eliminating fraudulent beneficiaries, and addressing inefficiencies in third-party payment systems. The NSFAS board has been tasked with communicating clear resolutions to students in the coming weeks.
Reimagining Skills Development
Manamela highlighted the disconnect between graduate skills and labour market needs, pointing out that nearly 10% of graduates are unemployed and that 67% of TVET college graduates are not placed in jobs.
To address this, he plans to strengthen workplace-based learning, reorient former technikons into universities of technology, and expand TVET colleges to accommodate more of the country’s 4 million unemployed and unskilled youth.
The PSET Reengineering Task Team will work with business and labour to identify skills needed for economic growth and to ensure that training aligns with job opportunities.
Campaigns to Empower Youth
Three major campaigns will be rolled out:
- Career Guidance: Helping school-leavers choose courses that match industry demand.
- Youth Skills Training: Linking young people not in education or employment with skills programmes.
- Adult Literacy: Targeting 4 million adults who are functionally illiterate.
Manamela stressed that the reforms would be implemented while keeping the “education system’s plane flying” to avoid disruptions.
“By the end of this government’s term, students should not be anxious about funding, universities should not face shutdowns, and society should trust that the sector is delivering on its mandate,” he said.
