By Charmaine Ndlela
The Ministry of Higher Education and Training has defended the approximately R9.9 million in combined annual remuneration allocated to four technical advisers appointed to support the administration of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), saying the structure is smaller and less costly than previous governance support arrangements.
The clarification follows public criticism of expenditure associated with the administration led by Professor Hlengani Mathebula, who was appointed after NSFAS was placed under administration on 4 May.
The ministry said scrutiny of public spending was legitimate and necessary, but maintained that the debate should be based on verified information and an understanding of the different governance arrangements under which NSFAS had operated.
NSFAS administers more than R50 billion annually in financial assistance to university and technical and vocational education and training college students.
The current administration has adopted a technical support structure comprising four specialist advisers appointed to help Mathebula implement a time-bound programme aimed at stabilising the institution.
“The combined annual remuneration of these four advisers is approximately R9.9 million,” the ministry said.
It said the amount compared with technical support costs of approximately R16.5 million a year under a previous administration and about R19.6 million annually under an earlier administration.
The ministry also said the former NSFAS board and its committee structures received approximately R31 million in remuneration during the 2025/26 financial year.
The ministry said that the structures performed different statutory functions and were therefore not directly comparable.
It nevertheless argued that the figures showed that the current administration had chosen a smaller technical support structure while retaining the specialist expertise required to implement reforms.
“The purpose of these appointments is not to create additional bureaucracy, but to restore governance, strengthen financial controls, improve operational performance, modernise systems and rebuild institutional capability,” the ministry said.
Questions have also been raised about compliance with Section 17C of the NSFAS Act, which provides that the remuneration and allowances of an administrator and other people appointed to assist the administration may be determined by the Higher Education Minister with the approval of the Finance Minister.
The ministry said the appointment of the administrator and the approval of technical advisers were separate from the statutory process governing their remuneration and allowances. It said it had engaged Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana in accordance with the Act and would cooperate with lawful oversight processes.
It urged the public to assess the administration according to measurable improvements in governance, accountability and services rather than solely on the appointment of technical advisers.
NSFAS has faced repeated governance, financial and operational failures, including weak internal controls, unreliable data, delayed payments to students and institutions, unresolved appeals and problems with its information technology systems.
Former NSFAS chief executive Andile Nongogo’s employment was terminated in 2023 following investigations into his involvement in the appointment of companies contracted to make direct payments to students.
The NSFAS board was dissolved in April 2024 after it failed to implement fully recommendations concerning the direct-payment contracts and continued to face problems with student allowance payments, internal capacity, information systems and responses to student queries.
The scheme was again placed under administration in May after several board members resigned and Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela concluded that the remaining board could not provide the leadership and oversight required to stabilise the institution.
Manamela appointed Mathebula as administrator and gave him full executive authority over NSFAS.
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