Question NW810 to the Minister of Basic Education
20 September 2019 - NW810
Van Minnen, Ms BM to ask the Minister of Basic Education
With regard to the 13 700 Funza Lushaka bursaries approved for initial teacher education by 31 March 2019, (a) why were only 13 070 students awarded bursaries by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme and (b) what is the total (i) number of students in each province who were awarded bursaries and (ii) monetary value of the bursaries awarded in each province?
Reply:
a) The Department of Basic Education is responsible for the awarding of Funza Lushaka Bursaries to eligible students. The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is appointed as the financial administrator of the Funza Lushaka Bursary Programme. The 13 070 students awarded bursaries refer to the number of students who received all their bursary funding from the NSFAS. The balance of 630 Funza Lushaka bursary holders is approved by the Department of Basic Education but have not received all their bursary funding by 31 March 2019. The Department is working with the NSFAS to ensure all bursary funding is disbursed to approved Funza Lushaka Bursary holders.
b) (i) The Funza Lushaka Bursary Programme awards bursaries by university and not provinces. Students recruited from provinces must be registered in one of the 24 public universities to be considered for the Funza Lushaka Bursary.
(ii) The total budget for the Funza Lushaka Bursary Programme in 2019 was R 1.22 billion. The allocation to a bursary holder is capped at R 103 899.00. The bursary amounts vary per university. The average value of the bursary across 24 universities in 2019 was R 93 923.00. An allocation letter is issued annually to the NSFAS indicating the number and monetary value of bursaries allocated by university.