The allocation of more funds to the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) will come as a welcome relief for higher learning institutions after Finance Minister Enoch Godongwane announced that Treasury would release additional funding to cover students who are struggling financially.
During his maiden Budget speech on Wednesday afternoon, Godongwane also said job creation is high on government’s agenda.
“In 2017, government announced a policy for fee-free higher education. We are announcing an additional allocation of R32.6-billion for financial support to current bursary holders and first-year students under the National Student Financial Aid Scheme,” said Godongwana.
Several higher institutions of learning in KwaZulu-Natal have been engulfed by violent student protests that led to the postponement of registration and academic activities. At the heart of the protests, which had been characterised by the burning of property, is the insufficient funds to cover new and returning students.
Universities have complained that there was no money to fund all the students, noting that the Covid-19 pandemic had hit them hard.
On job creation, Godongwana said over the medium term, R76-billion will be allocated for job creation programmes. “In this Budget, an additional R18.4-billion is made available for the Presidential Employment Initiative,” he said.
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