Universities South Africa (USAF – the representative body of all 26 South African public universities), in partnership with the Service Sector Education and Training Authority (Services Seta), has launched a new bursary scheme worth R520m. The scholarship aims to provide financial assistance to over 5000 students for their tertiary education.
The scheme is open to South African citizens who are first, second or final year students at a public South African university. This amount is limited to R100,000 per student per year and will support students throughout their studies, provided they maintain satisfactory academic progress and meet the requirements of their field of study.
To date, 24 of the 26 public South African universities have already received R20m, allowing the 200 student beneficiaries at each institution to focus on their studies without the stress of financial uncertainty. The people behind this initiative believe that prompt fund distribution is important for administrative efficiencies, timely and proper verification and reducing dependence on emergency, last-minute funding.
Speaking at the recently held kick-off workshop of the project, USF CEO Dr Fethiwe Matutu said external auditors will be appointed, and auditing will get underway well before the end of the financial year, enabling the universities to receive the next tranche of funding in time for students returning in 2027.
Services Seta's acting CEO Sibusiso Dhladhala cited issues previously encountered by his organisation, which is currently under administration due to governance failures. “Our goal is to validate this type of program so that it can serve as a benchmark for other regions to adopt. This is the legacy we would like to leave behind.”
Makhaya Blai, Acting Executive Manager: Office of the CEO, Services SETA, explained the rationale behind the early release of funds to universities. “We changed our scholarship model because we realized it did not serve the beneficiaries we wanted to help. We realized we needed an immediate solution moving forward, so this decision was made.”
He said Services SETA had appointed USAF as a strategic partner to mitigate the problems associated with awarding scholarships.
“I can safely say that this is a panacea for the problems faced by students in the past. We have taken a leap of faith with those responsible, on whom we trust to meet the deadlines and timely supply all matters related to audit for this academic year. By the time the university closes at the end of the year, we want to have all the results from this year's group so that we can pay in advance for their studies in 2027.
“Students need to be back in the classroom, not an administrative nightmare. We have a chance to make lives better.”
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