The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has revealed that it will no longer pay students with the voucher system known as “Sbux”, which was previously administered by third-party organisations.
NSFAS will now distribute funds only in cash to university and TVET college students, through approved financial institutions.
“NSFAS wants to eradicate the voucher system that compromises choices for our students and limits their financial planning,” said NSFAS spokesperson, Kagisho Mamabolo, to IOL News.
The move comes as last year, thousands of students complained of not receiving allowances for accommodation, meals, transport, books and other study materials even though they were approved for funding as the scheme struggled to process applications.
“The planned method would also eliminate payments through SMS and smart phone mechanism which were open to fraud and abuse,” concluded Mamabolo.
[Source – IOL News]
