On Tuesday, 23 January 2024, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Dr. Blade Nzimande, addressed the media on the department’s readiness for the start of the 2024 Post School Education and Training (PSET) academic year. He announced that the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) had provisionally funded 657,703 applicants who are recipients of the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) grants.
Minister Nzimande urged all NSFAS applicants to ensure they submit a completed consent form, which is essential for verifying the financial information of their parents, guardians, or spouses. This verification process, conducted through third-party sources like the South African Revenue Service (SARS), is necessary for NSFAS to comply with legal requirements and assess applicants’ financial eligibility.
He emphasized that applicants in the “application data” category must await communication from NSFAS—via SMS or email—with specific instructions on submitting the SARS Consent Form. Failure to submit a fully completed and signed consent form will lead to disqualification, as NSFAS will be unable to confirm financial need.
To improve communication with students, NSFAS has introduced new digital platforms. Students can now track their application status through the NSFAS mobile app, WhatsApp, or USSD. The NSFAS WhatsApp number is 078 519 8006, and the USSD code is 12067327.
In addition to application processes, Minister Nzimande called on all higher learning institutions to submit the names of registered NSFAS-funded students who require accommodation. These students will be assisted through the NSFAS accommodation portal, part of a broader effort to pilot private student housing accreditation at 17 universities and 23 TVET colleges for the 2024 academic year.
The goal of the accommodation programme is to ensure that student housing is safe, accessible, and conducive to academic success. NSFAS will be responsible for assigning students to available accommodations, accrediting providers, processing payments securely, and grading housing standards to determine quality and pricing caps.
As of the announcement, 25,989 of the 38,938 beds listed in TVET colleges had been accredited, with the remaining 12,949 still undergoing the process. In universities, 42,965 out of 67,337 registered beds were accredited, while 24,372 were still being processed.
To support this initiative, NSFAS launched an online portal on 18 January 2024 to allow institutions to view available accommodation in real time. Accreditation is ongoing, with daily updates to the portal.
NSFAS also began providing weekly training sessions on the application and registration process to accommodation providers and students from 8 January 2024. This training is expected to continue through February 2024.
Lastly, Nzimande shared that NSFAS had developed a plan to visit key “hot spot” areas during the registration period to prevent students from being stranded without accommodation.
