National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) board chairperson, Karen Stander, admitted that the new board has inherited an organisation faced with broken systems and unstable funding models.
Stander said NSFAS was hampered by a collapse in financial and supply chain governance. And it is challenged with ICT systems that are outdated, poorly integrated, and exposed to cyber-security risks.
Stander was speaking at a media briefing at the GCIS Tshedimosetso building in Pretoria on Wednesday.
Outdated organisational design
“The organisational design has not evolved in tandem with changes in funding structures, leading to breakdowns in human resources management and the absence of a cohesive organisational culture.
“A critical trust deficit exists between NSFAS, higher education institutions, student bodies, and students. With ongoing blame-shifting within a system characterised by essential interdependencies. Moreover, leadership instability spanning nearly a decade has contributed to organisational turbulence,” said Stander.
As she laid bare the scale of challenges facing the institution, she set out a road to recovery plan. This is aimed at rebuilding trust, fixing governance, and ensuring students receive the support they need.
She said the board was determined to put NSFAS on a new footing. It is already zooming into two major goals: recovery and reimagination, she added.
Five-year strategic plan
Stander emphasised the NSFAS five-year strategic plan as the foundation for change. Six priority projects are already approved.
This includes organisational design and alignment, loan management strategy, sustainable funding framework, transactional framework for student accommodation, ICT assessment and digital transformation strategy, and a revised business operating model.
“We are firmly committed to dedicating our resources to these critical priorities. With the conviction that such focus will enable NSFAS to emerge as a transformative force for good in South Africa,” said Sander.
Annual Performance Report
She added that the board had already submitted the 2024/25 Annual Performance Report on time. The Annual Financial Statements were submitted five months earlier than in the previous year.
“But numbers and deadlines alone are not enough. We must remember that NSFAS exists not only to take students to university and TVETs. But also to ensure they are supported through their journey there, into meaningful futures,” she said.
