Nzimande ‘committed’ to engaging student leaders

Nzimande met with Universities South Africa (USAf) to discuss student funding and debt challenges following the recent student protests against financial exclusion.

Nzimande also established a ministerial task team to look into the issue.

But he has reiterated that government t does not have the money to assist all students.

“It was also agreed that the public needs to understand that the higher education sector is already under financial stress because of declining subsidy levels and the current reprioritization of funding to compensate for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme shortfall.

“Therefore, any further debt relief measures must take into account the underlying stability of the system and differential capacities of individual institutions to absorb debt.”

He says all 26 universities have committed to using debt relief mechanisms to help qualifying students.

“Vice-chancellors from all 26 universities affirmed their ongoing commitment to constructively engage with student leadership structures at institutional level to continue to find solutions to the matters affecting registration of students, including financial matters.

“It has been agreed that a task team will be established urgently to begin work on a longer-term solution to support a comprehensive and sustainable student financial aid system.

“This process will begin immediately and aim to address both the challenges that are likely to face the system in 2022 and the development of a long term, sustainable student funding model and ecosystem," he said.

This while Wits has resolved to allow all qualifying students, who applied to the Wits Hardship Fund and the 300 put forward by the SRC, to register.

“We must work together as a system to collectively identify the medium to long term trajectory to a sustainable and stable student funding policy and to addressing the other issues relating to the funding of the higher education system," said Nzimande.

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