Nsfas payment delay puts student accommodation at risk

Thousands of students throughout the country may soon find themselves on the street as the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas) continues failing to pay service providers.

This is according to Amos Mdluli, secretary-general of the National Association for Student Accommodations Transformation (Nasat).

Mdluli said Nsfas had promised to pay the outstanding money last week, but partially paid some service providers for the services rendered from January to March and ignored the R140 million for the services rendered last year.

Nsfas payment delay

“Most of our members in the nine provinces did not receive payments, while others received a portion of the outstanding amount.

“Therefore, we are unable to guarantee or confirm that our members will be able to continue rendering the services.

ALSO READ: Where are the ‘ghost students’? Concerns over housing changes

“Some are already in debt due to the payment delay. We are trying to secure a meeting with Nsfas because they did not respect our agreement and they don’t even explain anything,” he said.

Mdluli said the services they offered included accommodation, transportation and other essentials.

However, Nsfas said it was conducting a thorough assessment of its internal processes concerning the payment of legitimate accommodation claims.

Assessment on internal processes

“As a result of this review, Nsfas has made significant improvements to streamline the payment process.

“We are pleased to announce that the payment date has been moved up from 4 April to 31 March. This adjustment reflects our commitment to provide timely and efficient support to students who rely on Nsfas funding for their accommodation needs,” said Nsfas.

ALSO READ: More than half of university students rely on Nsfas

It urged accommodation providers to refrain from evicting students and to collaborate with the scheme and submit their claims, according to guidelines.

The entity said cooperation was crucial to ensure students in vulnerable situations maintained stable living conditions while pursuing their studies.

“Nsfas remains committed to engaging with accommodation providers to implement longterm solutions to the challenges facing the private student accommodation sector,” it said.

Circular to landlords who didn’t submit claims on time

But Nsfas spokesperson Ishmael Mnisi said payments had been made and “we issued a circular to all landlords who did not submit their previous claims on time”.

Mdluli said they were angry because when Nsfas announced that payments initially scheduled for 4 April had been moved forward to 31 March it would make partial payment and no payment to others.

ALSO READ: Gondwe says Nsfas is vital for women’s economic participation

He said Nasat met Nsfas on 19 March and written submissions were made by e-mail and requests tabled for a clear communication line to be established by a contact person for effective finalisation of the outstanding 2024 payment outcome.

“No clear update has been received regarding outstanding payments from 2024.

No clear update

“This lack of communication and failure to meet financial obligations severely impact landlords’ ability to continue servicing their accommodation facilities, especially the small businesses that constitute a huge portion of this industry.

“Small businesses are the backbone of South Africa’s economy and have the potential to transform various sectors by providing jobs, fostering entrepreneurship and driving economic growth.”