Questions and Replies

Reply:

On the 21 November 2023, the occasion of the opening applications for 2024, Universities were discouraged from embarking on lengthy contracts since NSFAS is finalising its concept note on piloting student accommodation in universities at the start of the academic year 2024. Should CPUT be selected or asked to be part of the pilot project, NSFAS will advise on its decision to accredit or not accredit all properties within a radius of 1 (one) to 16km from all CPUT campuses, namely Paarl/Wellington, Bellville, and Cape Town.

Reply:

I, the Deputy Minister, and any department staff did not attend the Rugby World Cup in France in 2023 in an official capacity. The Honourable Member should note that nothing prevented officials from attending the Rugby World Cup final in France at their own expense.

1. (a) to (c) not applicable;
2. (i) to (iii) not applicable; and
3. (aa) to (cc) not applicable.

Once again, we are proud of the Springboks' triumph and especially the exciting matches against France, England, and New Zealand.

Reply:

a) The Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) has elected to audit all 50 TVET Colleges as part of its mandate as provided through the Public Audit Act. The AGSA implemented a phased-in approach over a 4-year period, in which all 50 TVET were audited from the 2017 financial year. The audit outcomes of the TVET Colleges for the period 2017 to 2022 is listed in the table below:

TVET College	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022
Boland	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified
Buffalo City	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Cape Town	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified	Qualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Capricorn	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Central Johannesburg	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Disclaimer	Disclaimer with other matters	Disclaimer	Outstanding
Coastal	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Adverse	Disclaimer	Disclaimer with emphasis of matter	Disclaimer	Outstanding
East Cape Midlands	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Ehlanzeni	Disclaimer with emphasis of matter	Disclaimer	Disclaimer	Adverse	Disclaimer with emphasis of matter	Adverse
Ekurhuleni East	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified
Ekurhuleni West	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Elangeni	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Esayidi	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified
False Bay	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Flavius Mareka	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Gert Sibande	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Outstanding
GoldFields	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Ikhala	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Ingwe	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with other matters	Qualified with other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified
King Hintsa	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
King Sabata	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Lephalale	Disclaimer	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Qualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters
Letaba	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Lovedale	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified
Majuba	Qualified with other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Maluti	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Mnambithi	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Mopani	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Motheo	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Mthashana	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Nkangala	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Northern Cape Rural	Unqualified with other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Northern Cape Urban	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Northlink	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified
Orbit	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Port Elizabeth	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Sedibeng	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Sekhukhune	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
South Cape	Unqualified with other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
South West Gauteng	Disclaimer with emphasis of matter	Disclaimer	Disclaimer	Disclaimer with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Taletso	Disclaimer	Disclaimer	Disclaimer	Disclaimer with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Outstanding
Thekwini	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
Tshwane North	Disclaimer	Disclaimer	Disclaimer with emphasis of matter	Disclaimer	Qualified	Qualified
Tshwane South	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Umfolozi	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Umgungundlovu	Qualified	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified
Vhembe	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Vuselela	Disclaimer with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Disclaimer	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter
Waterberg	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified with emphasis of matter	Qualified	Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter
West Coast	Unqualified with other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with other matters	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified
Western	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter	Unqualified with emphasis of matter

b) The Department does not conduct audits on public universities. In terms of the Higher Education Act, 101 of 1997, the council of a public higher education institution must in the manner prescribed by the Minister ensure the implementation of the recommendations of an external auditor in accordance with accepted audit principles and standards on an annual basis. The Minister has prescribed through the Regulations for Reporting by Public Higher Education Institutions (2014) that the Councils must include in their annual reports the statement of the Audit Committee on how it fulfilled its responsibilities and the report of the independent auditor on the annual report. Independent (external) auditors of universities are appointed by the councils, with the concurrence of the Auditor General South Africa.

The Council on Higher Education through the Higher Education Quality Committee (HEQC) also conducts institutional audits as part of its responsibilities for quality assurance. The audits focus on an institution’s policies, systems, procedures, strategies and use of resources. More specifically, the institutional audits also seek to assess an institution’s capacity for quality management of its academic activities in a manner that meets its specified mission, goals, and objectives, and engages appropriately with the expectations and needs of various internal and external constituencies.

Reply:

1. No, I have not been informed of any recording of the Chairperson of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) and others. The honourable member can share further information.
2. NSFAS has appointed a panel of Legal Service Providers. All Legal Service Providers are appointed from this panel as and when legal services are required.

Reply:

The Department is currently finalizing the infrastructure plan for 2024/25 financial year. However, the plan consists of the completion of campuses that are under construction.

The process of planning for new campuses is dependent on the budget which has not been finalized. The projects that are in the plan are summarized below:

NAME OF FACILITY	CAMPUS NAME	Province	Status
Ikhala TVET College	New Sterkspruit Campus	Eastern Cape	Practical Completion
Ingwe TVET College	Ntabankulu Campus	Eastern Cape	Feasibility
Gert Sibande TVET College	New Balfour Campus	Mpumalanga	95% Construction
Umgungundlovu TVET College	Greytown (Completion)	KwaZulu-Natal	Planning
uMfolozi TVET College	Bhambanana (Completion)	KwaZulu-Natal	Planning
uMfolozi TVET College	Nkandla B Campus	KwaZulu-Natal	Planning
Mnambithi TVET College	Berville/Escourt Campus	KwaZulu-Natal	Planning
Letaba TVET College	Giyani Campus	Limpopo	10% Construction
False Bay TVET College	Mitchels Plain Campus	Western Cape	Planning
Mthashana TVET College	Vryheid Campus	KwaZulu-Natal	30% Construction

The request for the Villiers campus has been presented to the Department. The request will be processed.

Reply:

(a) How does Higher Health ensure that adequate mental health support is provided to students who need it beyond the incidental and event-based hotline that caters for emergency situations, (b) how does his department ensure the provision of sustainable solutions and ongoing intervention through Higher Health to students who require it and

HIGHER HEALTH Mental Health Program is structured on three levels of interventions:

Level 1: focuses on combating stigma associated with mental health disorders, creating awareness of mental health, providing psycho-education, building resilience and self-help capacity, and modifying aspects of the campus environment that might affect mental health and wellbeing. We achieve these objectives through peer-peer dialogues, Our Co-Curriculum on mental health, use of mental health self-assessment tool by students, and guidelines and protocols to address risk factors on campus. This all forms part of the student toolkit.

Level 2: provides access to short term crisis counselling and support. The vehicle for this is the toll-free 24-hour helpline which HIGHER HEALTH offers in partnership with the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADG).

Level 3: is concerned with offering professional care and making referrals where necessary for further care and specialised facilities. HIGHER HEALTH has clinical and counselling psychologists attached to our provincial offices and recently added the Registered Counsellors that are based in some Campuses. Universities and some TVET Colleges have psychologists and counsellors on their staff. Referrals are made to private practitioners (where students have medical aid and referral to department of health as well).

The need for mental health support far exceeds the prevention and treatment of mental health, and the number of psychologists currently available. We have introduced task shifting and employed Registered Counsellors who are able to undertake some of the work of the psychologist. HIGHER HEALTH offers a time limit of six sessions per student. Those requiring prolonged support are referred to external service providers, and Department of Health (in districts where they are available).

(c) which institutions are currently catered for regarding direct access to Higher Health?

HIGHER HEALTH has clinical and counselling psychologists attached to our Provincial Offices and recently added the Registered Counsellors that are based in some Campuses. Universities and some TVET Colleges have psychologists and counsellors on their staff. For those that do not, Higher Health covers those students with their staff based at the provincial offices, or refers students to private practitioners (where students have medical aid) or to the Department of Health for assistance.

Reply:

a) The Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) Giyani Campus is being established at the former Giyani College of Education which is currently owned by the Limpopo Department of Education (LDE). In May 2023, my department commenced with a feasibility study for the establishment of the campus, but it then experienced a delay of more than 5 months from the side of LDE. An agreement on the way forward was reached on 16 October and the Department is now finalizing the feasibility study. Notwithstanding the delay mentioned above, in September 2023 I allocated R31.916 million to TUT for the University to carry out refurbishments and deferred maintenance on existing facilities upon the completion of the feasibility study.

b) The feasibility study will be completed in December 2023 and TUT will commence with the refurbishment and deferred maintenance in February 2024 which will enable the first intake of students during the 2025 academic year. Subject to the current budget cuts process, more funding will be allocated from 2024/25 onwards and over an anticipated 6-year period. The funding to be allocated during 2024/25 will enable TUT to start with the planning of the major projects during the 2024 calendar year.

Reply:

The NSFAS Board has sought legal advice on steps to take to cancel the impugned tender process. Of the advice received, approaching the High Court on self-review is the most legally astute and will afford all parties to state their cases before the court. NSFAS will abide by the just and equitable order once granted by the court.

Reply:

The Minister has in compliance with the High Court Order retracted the Government Gazette number 49582 Vol 700 dated 27 October 2023, which published the decision to dissolve the UNISA Council and appoint an Administrator, consequent to the UNISA Council remains in office.

Reply:

Universities are responsible for developing qualifications that are aligned to their different missions, visions and strategic directions. Further, the choice of the appropriate form of work integrated learning (WIL) or experiential learning depends on the nature, purpose, outcomes and the NQF level of the qualification. Institutions have the responsibility to ensure that they have sufficient capacity to provide quality assured opportunities for WIL for students and structures and systems in place within professional settings and sites of practice to support student learning. Universities are also responsible for placing students at appropriate work places and to ensure that WIL is structured, properly supervised, recorded and assessed.

The Department of Higher Education and Training (the Department) on the other hand, utilises national policies to steer higher education; examples are the Higher Education Act of 1997, as amended, the National Plan on Higher Education, the Higher Education Qualifications Sub-Framework and the NQF Act. The Department does not have the mandate to regulate the content of universities’ qualifications, it can and does however offer incentives for universities to ensure their curriculum is relevant.

Reply:

The NSFAS has received various complaints relating to alleged theft of student allowances via the direct payment service platforms. These complaints are being investigated and we are working with the direct payment service providers and law enforcement on resolving the complaints.

The investigation process will reveal what transpired and as such will confirm who should be held accountable for the alleged loss suffered by the students.

Reply:

a) (i) The budgets for Higher Education Institutions are published in the Appropriation Bill annually.

(ii) The budgets for Higher Education Institutions are made public quarterly

b) (i) The amount transferred to Higher Education Institutions are published in the Annual Report of the Department.

(ii) The total amount transferred to Higher Education Institutions are made public quarterly.

Reply:

The Department did not conduct any financial audit on the University of Venda in the 2022-23 financial year. In terms of the Department’s annual reporting regulations for universities, an annual audit of the financial statements of a university is conducted by external auditors appointed by the University. All universities submit their annual report with the audited financial statements to the Department at the end of June each year.

Reply:

a) Minister was referring to system glitches that were experienced during disbursement processes, there were registration data changes that was requested to be amended. (b) As per these changes that were requested the issue was resolved. (c) Payments to students was delayed by 2 days. (d) The issue was resolved. The system changes were made as requested by stakeholders and actioned. R119 million was allocated by DHET to support procurement of new systems. NSFAS reported that a new application system has been developed.

Reply:

1. The demographics of the 45 000 students is not immediately available, the Department will ask NSFAS to retrieve the data from its systems.
2. The discrepancies were only picked up after data remediation which takes place on the 28th March 2023 up to 29th June 2023 and these were only communicated to affected applicants, NSFAS communicated to students on the 10th of July 2023 via a media statement after they were picked up.
3. The discrepancies were caused by the outdated data received from SARS and NSFAS verification processes and financial eligibility assessments. After identifying the problem, NSFAS re-instated 14703 of the continuing students to be funded again and the remaining 31225 students remained unfunded and were given the opportunity to appeal.
4. We have implemented system enhancements to mitigate the problem moving forward, we have also moved away from the manual processes that were being utilized. Moving forward, the system will communicate with external parties directly via APIS to ensure that the data is not manipulated in any form.

Reply:

The Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation is empowered by the Skills Development Act (Act No.97 of 1998) (Act) to perform certain functions, such as Section 14(A) to issue a written instruction if :

(a) the SETA is not performing any of its functions or not complying with its service level agreement;

(b) the SETA is not managing its finances in accordance with this Act;

(c) the SETA’s membership is not representative of the constituencies contemplated in section 11; or

(d) the SETA has not prepared and implemented an employment equity plan as contemplated in section 20 of the Employment Equity Act, 1998 (Act No. 55 of 1998).

Another empowering provision is section 15 of the Act, to take over the administration of SETA after consultation with the National Skills Authority and the SETA in question, direct the Director-General to appoint an administrator to take over the administration of a SETA or to perform the functions of a SETA if :

(a) the SETA fails to perform its functions;

(b) there is mismanagement of its finances;

(c) its membership no longer substantially represents the composition contemplated in section 11;

(d) the SETA has failed to comply with its service level agreement, or (e) the SETA has failed to comply with an instruction issued by the Minister in terms of section 14A.

Since the appointment of the Accounting Authority in 2020, the Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Innovation has not invoked these provisions in respect of the Services Sector Education and Training Authority.

Reply:

The reporting by private higher education institutions (PHEIs) and the assessment thereof forms part of the monitoring of the higher education system by the Department of Higher Education and Training (“the Department”). Every year, the Directorate: Registration of Private Higher Education Institutions (“the Directorate”) requests PHEIs to submit annual reports to enable the Department to assess and monitor the level of compliance by PHEIs with respect to their obligations and responsibilities as defined in Chapter 6 of the Regulations for the Registration of Private Higher Education Institutions, 2016 (the Regulations) and Section 57 of the Higher Education Act, 1997 (Act No. 101 of 1997, as amended) (the Act). PHEIS are required to submit their annual reporting information by 30 April each year.

The annual report also includes student data and a ‘snapshot’ of programmes offered as well as student enrolments in the PHE sector. After assessing the annual reports, the Directorate complies a consolidated report titled “Annual Report on the Compliance of Private Higher Education Institutions with the Regulations” and presents this report to the sector and stakeholders in the Post School Education and Training (PSET) sector.

In cases where institutions are non-compliant, the Directorate enters the next stage of supporting the institution to become fully compliant by providing additional guidance and time. If, after exhausting all possibilities for rehabilitation, the institution fails to be complaint, then its registration is cancelled after due legal process is followed. The period and duration for rehabilitation can take anything from 3 to 6 years.

Reply:

The PotholeFix application (app) was developed as part of a contractual agreement between the CSIR and the Gauteng Provincial Government. This initiative is a component of a broader strategy to restore road network asset management system in the province, with a focus on optimising maintenance scheduling. Specifically, the app aims to streamline the reporting of incidents and their subsequent status updates. Collaboration between the provincial government and municipalities is crucial for addressing reported potholes promptly.

What makes the app unique is its alignment with the national road maintenance guidelines, providing first respondents with clear insights into the nature and severity of reported pothole. The app’s location-tracking feature ensures that reports are directed to the appropriate road authority. While the potential for nationwide implementation in partnership with other provinces exists, the app is currently operational exclusively in Gauteng. Its reception has been positive, with varying levels of adoption across municipalities. To date, the app has garnered over 12 000 downloads on Android and iOS platforms, contributing to the reporting of more than 9 000 potholes through this platform.

Reply:

In the 2022/23 financial year, the Department developed the sustainable funding model for Community Education and Training (CET) Colleges. The model was implemented with effect from the 2023/24 financial year. The intended outcome of the model is to equitably distribute available funding to Community Colleges taking into account a number of variables including a minimum allocation for basic college operations, enrolment numbers, programmes and qualifications mix, duration of programmes, etc. The model does not provide for any additional funding, it distributes the available budget equitably.

The model estimates that the CET college sector requires R876 million for annual operational activities (subsidy), and this amount excludes employee salary costs. This translates into a 76% funding gap when compared to the allocated subsidy of R211.641 million for the 2023/24 financial year.

Reply:

The challenges are explained in detail in two reports that have assessed the affairs of the University, namely the Report of the Ministerial Task Team (MTT) on the Strategic Review of the University of South Africa (2021) and the Report of the Independent Assessor (2022). Some of the key challenges are as follows:

• Failure by the University to make adequate provision for dramatic change in the profile of the student body, implementing enrolment targets which were unrealistic and, in some cases, even irresponsible, considering the lack of the institution’s teaching capacity.
• Failure to provide appropriate strategic guidance and direction to a modern Open Distance e-Learning (OdeL) institution in the 21st Century.
• Failure to address the weaknesses that have frustrated the implementation of its strategic priorities. The weaknesses include dysfunctional and outdated ICT infrastructure which compromised the health of the academic enterprise; collapsed basic assurance services and functions necessary to ensure effective governance; ineffective risk management and control processes; retention of a deeply-embedded culture of non-compliance and impunity; chronic management failures in many of the key support systems such as supply chain management, human resource management, compliance and finance and a gross neglect of consequence management.
• Failure to establish an enabling and ethical culture, and has allowed an all-pervasive culture of corruption, conflict, fear and intimidation to prevail.
• Dysfunctionality of the Office of the Registrar, particularly as it relates to student administration, leaving students frustrated. This is compounded exploitation of students by fraudulent tutors because of poor protection of student’s personal information.
• Lack of appreciation of good governance, as demonstrated by outdated statute, policies and adherence to governance instruments. For instance, the Management knowingly took irregular financial decisions that have had far-reaching consequences for the University, namely the selective salary adjustments to academic staff and some portion of the support staff, the laptop scheme, etc. These were condoned by the Council.
• For a long time, Council had reduced the delegation of authority (DoA) of management, and in doing so interfered in matters that ordinarily fell within the purview of Management.

Reply:

The Department has started a process of building Community Education and Training (CET) Colleges infrastructure to address the challenges of infrastructure in the sector. One billion rand has been allocated to the Community Colleges for infrastructure over the 2023 MTEF period. The initial plan seeks to build Community Colleges and Community Learning Centres in nine (9) provinces: one in each province. The construction is currently in planning phase with consultants having started with the concept designs. The actual construction is targeted to commence in March 2024.

The Department is also working with Provincial Departments for Basic Education to identify properties that are underutilised so that they can be repurposed for Community Learning Centres.

Furthermore, the Department has developed Intergovernmental Protocols on the use of public school facilities of Provincial Education Departments by Community Learning Centres of the Community Colleges under the Department of Higher Education and Training. The Protocols are meant to manage the current relationship between schools and Centres.

Reply:

The head count enrolment of students in academic years 2016–2022 is displayed in Table 1 below, while graduates for the same period are shown in Table 2. The data relates to students who are enrolled in or have graduated from programmes in criminal justice and related programmes.

The numbers for academic year 2022 in both tables are regarded as preliminary.

We are unable to provide information about the work status of the graduates at this moment, but may be able to do so once further tracer studies are conducted.

Table 1:

Field of Specialisation	Criminal Justice and Corrections
Year	Total
2016	13778
2017	15251
2018	15564
2019	17790
2020	23964
2021	23511
2022	29429

Table 2:

Field of Specialisation	Criminal Justice and Corrections
Year	Total
2016	2752
2017	2809
2018	2994
2019	2773
2020	4486
2021	4406
2022	4799

Reply:

The main reasons for low student enrollment at Community Education and Training (CET) Colleges are associated with lack of physical infrastructure including Information and Communication Technology, and inadequate funding. 95% of Community Learning Centres of the Community Colleges operate in Basic Education infrastructure which leaves a very low number of those that operate on their own site.

To resolve this challenge of inadequate infrastructure, the Department has started with the process of acquiring physical infrastructure for colleges. In addition to funding set aside for new buildings, discussions are underway with the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure to identify underutilised public buildings for the sole use of CET colleges.

The current funding for CET colleges is R2.8 billion, for which R2.6 billion caters for compensation of employees and R211.6 million for operations of colleges (subsidy). The CET sector is allocated 2% of the total PSET budget. The current allocation is thus unable to cater for the proposed needs of the CET sector.

Reply:

a) The perpetrator was apprehended until campus security took him away and he was arrested, meanwhile, the victim was rushed to hospital and had emergency surgery and is currently recovering. The accused appeared in court on attempted murder charges and remains behind bars as he awaits a bail application date.

b) University security heads were invited to workshops, wherein gaps in their security protocols were discussed and further insights shared with researchers, USAF, SAPS and CAMPROSA. It was agreed that a security blueprint will be developed for the universities. In addition, it was agreed that security policies to support staff, students and management must be developed and approved by the Councils of all the universities by the end of the financial year.

Reply:

1. Comprehensive Student Funding Model
2. As soon as it is approved by cabinet in November.
3. The seed funding behind the initiative will be sourced from the National Skills Fund (NSF), SETA’s, BBBEE Code 300 skills fund as prescribed in legislation, and banks.
4. It is estimated that about 11% of university students constitute the missing middle who are not eligible for state funding, although some non-funded NSFAS students can also be defined as the missing middle.

Reply:

a) The Ekurhuleni based institution is anticipated to open its doors in 2026; and

b) The Hammanskraal based institution is also anticipated to open its doors in 2026.

Reply:

1. (a) The total amount expended against the Departmental budget for the 2023/24 financial year as at 30 September 2023, is

R91 864.945 million which includes R10 947.497 million in relation to Direct Charges.

(b) The main expenditure programmes are:

• Programme 1: Administration at R234.802 million or 45.4%
• Programme 6: Community Education and Training at R1 406.590 or 52.7%
• Programme 5: Skills Development at R142.148 million or 32.9%
• Programme 4: Technical and Vocational Education and Training at R6 144.052 million or 48.2%
• Programme 3: University Education at R72 071.195 million or 77.8%
• Programme 2: Planning, Policy and Strategy at R918.661 million or 52.1%

2. To date, our 26 public universities have outstanding infrastructure projects from previous cycles amounting to R9.416 billion. A summary of outstanding infrastructure projects with breakdown of costs and envisaged implementation dates is shown in Table 1 below

Table 1: Summary of universities’ outstanding infrastructure projects

Institution	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
CPUT	Extension and Alteration of Old Education Building in Bellville Campus (Phase 1)	75 000	162 530	May-23	Aug-23	Dec-24
	Conversion of Freedom Square Residence from Catering to Self-Catering	17 530		Aug-22	Dec-22	Mar-24
	Construction of an Applied Science Building in Bellville Campus	70 000		Jun-22	Jul-23	Feb-25
CUT	New Management Building: Bloemfontein Campus	67 924	376 398	DEFERRED	DEFERRED	DEFERRED
	New Jewellery School Building: Bloemfontein Campus	24 231		TBC	TBC	TBC
	New Teachers Education Building: Welkom Campus	78 215		Apr-23	TBC	Oct-25
	New Multi-Purpose Hall: Welkom Campus	28 203		Apr-23	TBC	Mar-25
	Construction of 400-beds student residence: Welkom Campus	111 072		28-Feb-23	Sep-23	01-Aug-25
	Construction of 260-beds student residence: Bloemfontein Campus	66 754		Mar-23	TBC	Oct-25
DUT	Replacement of steel windows, built cupboards and painting on Indumiso	8 000	394 162	08-Oct-22	07-Feb-23	06-Dec-23
	Midland Campuses - Disability Access: Toilets and access ramps	1 650		01-Nov-20	02-Feb-23	01-Feb-24
	Indumiso urban campus: Replacement of netball, tennis and volleyball courts	3 300		Jun-23	TBC	Jun-24
	New Student Centre and Centre for Entrepreneurship	149 572		Sep-19	Sep-19	Dec-23
	New Engineering Building -PHASE 2	231 640		Sep-19	Sep-19	Dec-23
MUT	Construction New Block E TV Room & Study Area at MUT Residences	7 660	354 785	Feb-20	Oct-22	Oct-23
	Repairs and Renovations to the Existing Block E Student residences	18 246		Apr-23	May-23	Mar-24
	Construction of the New 57 Bed Residence Block	31 906		Oct-23	Oct-23	Apr-25
	Refurbishment of Existing C45, C46 & C47 Computer Labs at MUT Main Campus	3 300		May-23	Jun-23	Aug-23

Institution	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
	MUT Soccer field Upgrades Including Athletic Tracks	23 248		Mar-23	May-23	Jan-24
	Main Library Lift Upgrade	9 397		Mar-23	May-23	Feb-24
	Refurbishment to Faculty of Natural Sciences Ablution	6 605		Jun-22	Jul-22	Sep-22
	Upgrade to MUT Seme Road	12 888		Jun-23	Jun-23	Feb-24
	Supply and installation of new water storage tanks	23 192		May-23	May-23	Feb-24
	Refurbishment of electrical infrastructure	4 272		May-23	May-23	Mar-24
	ICT business continuity and security upgrade	3 675		May-23	May-23	Feb-24
	Upgrade of the existing CCTV surveillance system	3 146		Sep-22	Sep-22	Apr-23
	E-learning and purchasing of Ithala Building	65 260		TBC	TBC	TBC
	Refurbishment of Biomedical Technology Lab	10 000		Jan-23	Jan-23	Jul-23
	Construction of a Tunnel Link	41 220		Jan-24	Jan-24	Oct-25
	Replacement of Roof	31 210		May-23	Jun-23	Feb-24
	Completion of a 135-bed student residence	29 070		Jan-19	Feb-20	Mar-23
	New 100-bed student residence	30 492		Oct-23	Oct-23	Jan-25
NMU	Ocean Sciences (Science Centre & Block E Extension)	85 459	344 059	15-Jan-21	15-Jan-21	20-Dec-23
	Construction of 2000-beds SHIP student residences: Completion of the last 2 Blocks (approximately 280 Beds) on the Summerstrand Campus	258 600		01-Nov-23	01-Nov-23	TBC
NWU	New laboratory spaces for Education - PC	47 844	187 680	11-Jan-23	11-Jan-23	30-Apr-24
	New building for Psychosocial Health - VC	47 770		18-Oct-22	18-Oct-22	02-Feb-24
	Refurbish Building 24 for multipurpose hall - VC	29 504		05-Jul-22	05-Jul-22	29-Mar-24
	Refurbishment of spaces for the Schools of Biological and Geospatial Sciences - PC	62 562		14-Sep-22	14-Sep-22	14-Apr-24
RU	Institute for Nanotechnology Innovation (INI)	86 700	502 105	04-Jul-22	04-Jul-22	20-Nov-23
	Refurbishment of the Chemistry/Pharmacy building Phase 1	129 958		21-Nov-22	21-Nov-22	29-Feb-24
	Refurbishment of the Chemistry/Pharmacy building Phase 2	90 000		01-Dec-23	01-Dec-23	28-Feb-25
	Electrical MV modernization project	30 000		15-Jan-24	15-Jan-24	20-Dec-25

Institution	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
	Fire safety compliance project (remainder of campus)	39 000
	Main Admin building complex	126 447
SMU	Water Reticulation	77 000	1 173 992	31-Aug-21	31-Aug-21	20-Nov-24
	New University Boundary Wall	23 346		30-Oct-20	30-Oct-20	20-Jul-24
	ICT Network Refresher Project - Network upgrades, data centre upgrade and hardware	420 151		07-Feb-21	07-Feb-21	31-Dec-23
	Main Library Building	28 691		16-Jan-21	16-Jan-21	31-Jan-24
	Construction of 2000-beds SHIP student residence	295 398		12-Jul-21	12-Jul-21	31-Dec-24
	Construction of an 800-bed student residence	290 598		13-Jan-22	TBC	TBC
	Deferred Maintenance: Residences 1C & 2B	38 809		14-Jun-22	14-Jun-22	30-Nov-23
SPU	C009 - Academic - Education	60 989	554 173	07-Jul-21	07-Jul-21	30-Jun-24
	Project 3: Defects (Letter dated 19/07/2017)	5 000		01-Dec-23	TBC	31-Mar-25
	Project 4: Contingency (Letter dated 19/07/2017)	5 000		01-Dec-23	TBC	31-Mar-25
	Furniture, Fittings & Equipment (various buildings)	91 276		01-Dec-23	TBC	31-Mar-25
	BX00, SX00 & NX01 - Bulk Infrastructure	86 983		08-Sep-21	09-Sep-21	31-Mar-25
	N001 - Erf 1 Construction (Oppenheimer Garden)	23 000		11-Oct-21	11-Oct-21	31-Aug-24
	Erf 1 Design Development and Approval	2 000		21-Oct-21	21-Oct-21	31-Aug-24
	P008 - Infrastructure Capacity Building	7 500		21-Nov-22	21-Nov-22	31-Mar-25
	P009 - Forward Planning and Design	3 000		21-Nov-22	21-Nov-22	31-Mar-25
	P001 - P007 (PMT & Planning)	27 309		21-Nov-22	21-Nov-22	31-Mar-25
	D001 - 6: ICT Core Platform	53 924		21-Nov-22	21-Nov-22	31-Mar-25
	Project Insurance	1 505		21-Nov-22	21-Nov-22	31-Mar-25
	N002 - Academic/Residential/Shared (Great Hall, Info Centre and Student Admissions)	38 767		18-Oct-21	18-Oct-21	31-Aug-24
	C010 - Heritage Studies and Humanities Building	65 893		14-Jun-21	14-Jun-21	03-Oct-23
	S008 - Residential	40 571		21-Aug-22	21-Aug-22	31-Aug-24
	S009 - Residential	41 456		21-Aug-22	21-Aug-22	31-Aug-24
SUN	Upgrading of electrical infrastructure	60 350	60 350	14-May-21	14-May-21	30-Nov-23

Institution	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
TUT	New Multipurpose Teacher Education Building	57 705	767 144	10-Feb-20	10-Feb-20	Mar-23
	New Auditorium Building	71 461		24-Jan-20	24-Jan-20	TBC
	New Classrooms Building	74 871		27-Jul-21	27-Jul-21	TBC
	Multipurpose Examination Halls & Lecturing Venues	170 044		Sep-23	TBC	Dec-24
	New Multipurpose ICT & ERC Centre (Phase 1 And 2)	14 390		Sep-23	TBC	Dec-24
	New Film School: Arts Campus (Phase 1)	31 425		Jul-23	TBC	Jan-25
	Extension of the Library (Phase 1)	5 057		Aug-23	TBC	TBC
	Structural Refurbishment of Building 4	1 965		Oct-23	Oct-23	Feb-24
	Refurbishment of Roof Structure of Building 25	3 104		Oct-23	Oct-23	Feb-24
	Refurbishment of Gencor Hall	7 014		Jul-23	Aug-23	TBC
	Refurbishment of Building 15 and Rehabilitation of Unstable Asbestos Panels	5 131		Oct-23	Oct-23	Feb-24
	Construction of new student residences: 250-beds at Soshanguve Campus and 250-beds at Garankuwa Campus	134 164		24-May-18	24-May-18	TBC
	Construction of new student residences: 500-beds at eMalahleni Campus and 600-beds at Soshanguve Campus	110 000		16-Aug-21	16-Aug-21	TBC
	Construction of a 500-bed residence: eMalahleni Campus	65 000		16-Aug-21	16-Aug-21	TBC
	Shortfall: New eMalahleni Campus student residence (PA-50)	5 694		16-Aug-21	16-Aug-21	TBC
	Shortfall: New Soshanguve Campus student residence (PA-51)	3 382		16-Aug-21	16-Aug-21	TBC
	Shortfall: New Ga-Rankuwa Campus student residence (GM-14)	2 500		24-May-18	24-May-18	TBC
	Shortfall: Ga-Rankuwa Campus student residence (PK24)	4 238		24-May-18	24-May-18	TBC
UCT	Water Sustainability Projects	70 000	70 000	13-Jun-19	13-Jun-19	31-Dec-23

Institution	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
UFH	Deferred Maintenance Projects	76 625		13-Jun-19	13-Jun-19	31-May-24
	HDI Infrastructure Backlog FC10: Chemistry lab, network and telephone systems	30 200		14-Jun-23	14-Jun-23	14-Dec-23
	Eskom Connection	19 073		15-Aug-23	15-Aug-23	30-Nov-23
	Replacing the Obsolete Substation	12 903		16-Aug-23	TBC	TBC
	Early Childhood Development Centre: East London Campus	53 699	534 194	30-Mar-23	TBC	31-Jul-24
	Student Centre & Parkade: East London Campus	63 059		16-Aug-23	TBC	01-Jul-25
	Electricity Infrastructure Upgrades - Alice Campus	56 240		16-Aug-23	TBC	20-Dec-24
	Occupational Health & Safety Compliance: All Campuses	55 850		16-Jul-23	TBC	01-Jul-25
	Disability Access: All Campuses	36 546		16-Aug-23	TBC	01-Jul-25
	Alice Water and Sanitation Project	130 000		13-Mar-23	TBC	30-Jun-24
	Backlog Maintenance (5th Cycle)	20 000		13-Jul-23	13-Jul-23	15-Dec-25
UJ	Disability Access Projects	5 000	30 000	15-Jun-23	15-Jun-23	31-Dec-24
	Upgrade of Lecture Venues	5 000		15-Apr-23	15-Apr-23	31-Dec-23
	Additional offices and lab space at Blocks E & F	15 000		15-Apr-22	15-Apr-22	31-Oct-23
	Construction of New Tutorial Building	70 000		16-Nov-23	TBC	31-Dec-25
	Refurbishment of Oval Residence: Westville Campus (4th IEG cycle)	15 200		DEFERRED	DEFERRED	DEFERRED
UKZN	Construction of a new 194-bed residence: Medical Campus	60 000	299 200	TBC	TBC	30-Nov-25
	Acquisition and/or development of 400 beds off- campus: UKZN wide	120 000		TBC	TBC	31-Dec-24
	Refurbishment of wet works Oval Residence: Westville Campus (5th IEG cycle)	9 000		DEFERRED	DEFERRED	DEFERRED
	Conversion of Charles Smith Hall to 54-bed student residence: Howard College	10 000		15-Sep-22	15-Sep-22	19-Dec-23
UL	Deferred Maintenance	135 539	791 633	15-Aug-17	15-Aug-17	31-Dec-25

Institution	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
	New Earth Sciences Building	183 022		09-Feb-23	09-Feb-23	31-Oct-24
	Extension to Library including ICT space, Phase 1	108 882		09-Feb-23	09-Feb-23	30-Apr-24
	3500-beds SHIP student residence	364 190		TBC	TBC	31-Dec-25
UMP	NBP0015 - Lower Campus D725 Northern Entrances	87 950	87 950	01-Aug-22	15-Oct-22	31-Oct-23
UNISA	FC1: Disability Centre of excellence	20 585	334 657	Apr-23	Sep-23	Jun-24
	Statutory Compliance Projects	20 000		09-Mar-23	09-Mar-23	31-Dec-23
	Universal Access Projects	24 000		May-23	May-23	May-24
	Sustainability Projects	6 000		Apr-23	Mar-23	Jan-24
	Sunnyside Perimeter Wall	9 600		Mar-23	Mar-23	Jul-24
	Sunnyside Development: Phase 1	60 178		Apr-23	Aug-23	Apr-25
	Sunnyside Development: Phase 2	12 042		Apr-23	Sep-23	May-25
	Sunnyside Development: Phase 5	40 752		Aug-23	Oct-23	Nov-25
	Florida Gas OHS Renovation	134 300		Feb-23	Apr-23	Jun-25
	HVAC Chillers Replacement	7 200		Dec-22	Feb-23	May-23
UNIVEN	Disable Student Unit Centre: fire regulations compliance, servicing of electrical installations, and improvement of universal access	630	325 931	12-Aug-22	31-Mar-23	31-Oct-23
	School of Environmental Sciences: Upgrades	2 600		29-Nov-22	30-Mar-23	29-Jul-23
	Construction of a simulation laboratory	11 630		15-Oct-22	15-Aug-23	30-Oct-24
	Perimenter fencing	22 155		07 March 2021	29-Aug-22	31-Oct-23
	Punda Maria Road	27 297		24-Nov-22	13-Feb-23	13-Oct-24
	Completion of the School of Health Sciences Building	62 117		29-Jun-21	17-Apr-22	17-Aug-23
	Completion of the 1800-beds DBSA funded student residences	190 000		14-Sep-22	14-Sep-22	15-Dec-23
	Replacement of asbestos roofing: Riverside Student Residence	5 475		15-Oct-22	29-Nov-22	29-Aug-23
	Replacement of asbestos roofing: B Ncube Student Residence	1 847		15-Oct-22	29-Nov-22	29-Aug-23

Institution	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
	Replacement of asbestos roofing: Mangogroove Residence	2 180		15-Oct-22	29-Nov-22	29-Aug-23
UNIZULU	New Student Centre	55 000	1 008 521	01-Aug-22	26-Oct-22	31-Mar-24
	New multi-purpose centre with media centre, language labs, seminar rooms & staff offices	80 448		28-Mar-24	TBC	28-Oct-25
	Perimeter Fence	27 846
	New Student Administration block	106 132		28-Apr-24	TBC	28-Nov-25
	Rehabilitation of Internal Roads	5 355		Awaiting Virement approval
	New Agricultural Building	21 420		Awaiting Virement approval
	Phase 1 and 2 Sports Facility	9 638		15-Nov-21	28-Oct-22	28-Apr-24
	Manufacture and install 12 x LV panels for substations	4 080		15-Oct-22	28-Feb-23	28-Apr-24
	Electrical infrastructure upgrade (replacing high tension cables)	3 000		15-Nov-22	28-Mar-23	28-Jul-24
	Installation new lift: Natural Sciences building	700		15-Oct-23	TBC	28-Mar-24
	Upgrade of Wastewater reticulation	8 000		Awaiting Virement approval
	Storm water management system	6 500		28-Mar-24	TBC	28-Oct-25
	Development of Engineering Building: Richards bay Campus	90 000		08-Apr-22	08-Apr-22	22-Aug-24
	Development of new Multi-Purpose lecture theatres	45 000		28-Mar-24	TBC	28-Oct-25
	New Academic building: Depts of Social Work, Law and Music	40 500		Awaiting Virement approval
	Refurbishment of East Residence Plant Room: Kwa- Dlangezwa Campus	6 600		28-Mar-24	TBC	22-Aug-24
	Installation of East Residence heat pumps: Kwa- Dlangezwa Campus	7 000		28-Mar-24	TBC	22-Aug-24
	Installation of East Residence water tanks: Kwa- Dlangezwa Campus	9 000		Awaiting Virement approval
	Installation of West Residence heat pumps: Kwa- Dlangezwa Campus	8 800		28-Mar-24	TBC	22-Aug-24

	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
Institution		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
	Installation of West Residence water tanks: Kwa- Dlangezwa Campus	13 502		Awaiting Virement approval
	Major Refurbishment of Existing Student Residences (Mtshali, Nikiza, New York, Richard Bay)	225 000		09-Jun-22	30-Jun-22	14-Aug-24
	3500-beds SHIP student residences: Kwa-Dlangezwa and Richards Bay Campuses	235 000		09-May-22	09-May-22	28-Mar-24
UP	Capacity Infrastructure Upgrade	84 350	126 350	15-Aug-21	15-Oct-21	28-Oct-25
	Deferred Maintenance	42 000		15-Jun-22	15-May-23	28-Aug-24
	South Campus renewal and repurposing for Education	86 744		Mar-23	TBC	Nov-25
UWC	Renewal & repurposing: Senate Building space vacated by CHS	73 063	217 542	Jan-24	TBC	Jul-25
	Renewal & repurposing: Education Building	57 735		Mar-23	TBC	Nov-25
	Renovation of Laboratories	12 700		Mar-24	TBC	Apr-25
	Renovation of Lecture Halls	20 356		31-Jan-23	31-Jan-23	30-Nov-23
	Renovation of Ablutions	9 949		20-Jan-23	20-Jan-23	16-Dec-23
	Disability External	5 800		01-May-23	01-May-23	28-Feb-24
	Disability Internal	6 600		01-May-23	01-May-23	28-Feb-24
	Engineering Teaching Equipment	45 275		15-Sep-24	15-Sep-24	15-Dec-24
	Engineering Extension Building	15 063		24-Aug-17	24-Aug-17	31-Oct-24
	Engineering Teaching Furnishing	3 000		15-Sep-24	15-Sep-24	15-Dec-24
VUT	Life & Physical Science Equipment	14 232	460 248	24-Jul-24	24-Jul-24	01-Nov-24
	Life & Physical Science Renewal Lab	3 050		24-Jul-24	24-Jul-24	01-Nov-24
	Life & Physical Science Building	124 910		24-Jul-16	24-Jul-16	01-Aug-24
	Life & Physical Science Furnishings	514		24-Jul-24	24-Jul-24	01-Nov-24
	Teacher Education Building	33 735		24-May-17	24-May-17	30-Nov-24
	Teacher Education Furnishings	677		10-Oct-24	10-Oct-24	31-Dec-24
	Teacher Education Equipment	2 455		10-Oct-24	10-Oct-24	31-Dec-24
	Sciences and research laboratories	78 017		15-Feb-24	15-Feb-24	6-Dec-25
	Renovation of various student residences	37 680		15-Mar-23	15-Mar-23	6-Mar-24

Institution	Project Name/Description	Funding (R' 000)
		Total/Project	Total/Institution	Estimated Construction Start Date	Construction Start Date	Estimated Project Completion Date
	Refurbishment of various student residences	46 235		15-May-23	15-May-23	6-Jun-24
WITS	Campus Sustainability: Energy Efficiency Programme	5 000		10-May-22	10-May-22	20-Feb-24
	Wits School of the Arts: Fine Arts Studio Development	23 985		15-Jan-21	15-Jan-21	30-Jun-24
	Built Environment Precinct Expansion and Redevelopment	45 769		16-Jul-21	16-Jul-21	31-Dec-23
	Wits Test & Examination Centre: Part 2 - Solomon Mahlangu House West Wing Drawing Hall	7 346	90 576	20-Apr-23	20-Apr-23	30-Jun-24
	Thembalethu Large Teaching Venues	4 649		1-May-23	1-May-23	30-Jun-24
	Lecture and Teaching Venue Audio Visual Equipment Upgrade	3 828		18-Apr-23	18-Apr-23	28-Feb-24
WSU	Faculty Consolidation Furniture and equipment	4 320		Still struggling to find a site
	Faculty Consolidation Institutional Office	14 346		Still struggling to find a site
	Faculty Consolidation Provisional sums	5 167		Still struggling to find a site
	Faculty Consolidation Escalations and professional fees	14 016		Still struggling to find a site
	Renewable energy initiatives	9 000	162 149	24 May 23	24 May 23	28-Jul-24
	Upgrade & Expansion to Dwesa Research Station	9 000		23 Apr 23	23 Apr 23	05 Dec 23
	Small Enterprise development centre for Agricultural businesses	6 300		20-Jan-23	TBC	13-Oct-24
	Refurbishment of Zamukulungisa Student Residence: Mthatha Campus	100 000		17 Mar 22	17 Mar 22	17 Nov 23
Total/Source	9 416 331	9 416 331
Grand-Total

Reply:

The Minister participated in hydrogen economy-related ministerial engagements from 25 to 27 September 2023 that were held in Tokyo, Japan, to profile the work of the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) as well as promote collaboration, investment, and innovation in support of the deployment of hydrogen at scale, which is essential for the successful implementation of the National Hydrogen Society Roadmap (HSRM).

(a) Subsequent to the Ministerial Visit to Japan, the following plans are in place to build a hydrogen economy in the Republic:

1. Energy Sector Support Programmes

In support of the energy sector, the DSI will continue to support the following energy research, development and innovation (RDI) programmes with academic institutions and corporate partners:

• Hydrogen South Africa (University of Cape Town, Mintek, North-West University, Council for Industrial Research, University of the Western Cape, Anglo American, Impala Platinum, Bambili (SMME), etc.);
• Platinum Valley Project (Anglo American Platinum, Engie and Bambili);
• Green Ammonia project (Sasol); and
• Carbon Capture and Use (PPC Cement, EPCM (SMME)).

2. Design of Appropriate Operating Models

The DSI has initiated engagements with private sector and international partners to design appropriate operating models that will ensure better coordination and partnerships for the effective implementation of the Hydrogen Society Roadmap.

(b) The following steps will be taken to ensure that a hydrogen economy is built in the Republic:

1. Strengthen Current Existing Strategic Partnerships

The DSI will continue to explore ways to strengthen the following current existing strategic partnerships through active participation in related platforms:

• International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE). South Africa is the current Chair of the IPHE and aims to use its tenure to encourage more African countries to join IPHE;
• International Energy Agency;
• United Nations Industrial Development Organization;
• Hydrogen Council (private sector-led); and
• African Hydrogen Alliance (Egypt, Kenya, Mauritania, Morocco, Namibia and South Africa).

2. Opportunities for Partnerships

The DSI will continue to seek partnerships with both the public and private sector in:

• Testing and validation of the technology through field trials;
• Further development and optimisation of the technology;
• Developing a supply chain that supports the deployment of technology;
• Supporting skills development through internships (universities & TVETs) to support technology deployment;
• Training the end users of the technologies through local municipalities;
• Stimulating local demand for emerging technologies to power social and economic infrastructure; and
• Facilitating the establishment of manufacturing facilities in the country that allow for the integration of locally developed intellectual property and inbound technology where appropriate.

Reply:

COMPILER DETAILS

NAME AND SURNAME:

CONTACT:

RECOMMENDATION

It is recommended that the Director-General sign Parliamentary Question 3268.

DR N SISHI

DIRECTOR–GENERAL: HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING

DATE:

PARLIAMENTARY REPLY 3268 IS APPROVED / NOT APPROVED / AMENDED.

COMMENT/S

DR BE NZIMANDE, MP

MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND INNOVATION

DATE:

Reply:

UNIVERSITY

1)

a) Rule 7.3.2 of the 2023 NSFAS ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA AND CONDITIONS FOR FINANCIAL AID was shared with all the 26 Universities in December 2022, it stated that NSFAS will make allowance for a minimum of 3 months’ notice to institutions where it intends to take over full payment of allowances.

Subsequently, a Notice was issued by the NSFAS on 03 March 2023, informing universities that starting from 01 June 2023, NSFAS will assume responsibility for disbursing allowances to its beneficiaries.

An additional Notice was issued on 26 May 2023 clarifying that the first direct payment will take place on the last day of June 2023. It further clarified that institutions should continue to process June allowances to students.

(b) As of the end of June 2023, a total of 24 universities were successfully onboarded and their students received their July 2023 allowance payments through the direct payments. Two universities, Stellenbosch University and Northwest University, have yet to disburse the allowances for the month of July 2023. These two universities joined the direct payment program towards the end of July 2023, and released August 2023 allowances.

(c) As of 30 July 2023, the total number of KYC complete students is 316 741.

2)

Challenges	Definition	Action required
Cyber Attack	Instances of cyber-attacks threaten student accounts and system integrity.	Partners will implement robust cybersecurity measures, safeguarding against cyber threats and unauthorized access and ensuring student security.
Transition Resistance	Resistance from institutions, students and student leadership to adopt the new payment system.	Continue to engage stakeholders, address concerns, and highlight system benefits to foster smoother transitions and wider acceptance.
Inaccurate Claims/ Registration data	Incorrect allowances were paid due to inaccurate registration data received from the institutions.	NSFAS opened the adjustment window to allow institutions to correct their registration data.
Students say the direct payment charges are excessive.	Students are paid directly to their accounts and charged for withdrawals and services.	NSFAS and students negotiated a reduction from R89 to R12. Further engagements will commence.

TVET COLLEGE

1)

a) The direct payment process was introduced at TVET colleges in the last quarter of 2022, with the first payment made in November 2022. The 2023 academic year saw a continuation and improvement in the process. Because students at the 44 colleges were already being paid their allowances directly by NSFAS through the NSFAS Wallet, transition to the direct payment process was gradual with the 6 remaining Western Cape colleges receiving money from NSFAS and paying it over themselves to students.

b) To date all 50 TVET Colleges are onboarded on the direct payment method of payment.

c) There are 187 180 students KYC complaint in the TVET sector, meaning are fully registered to access their allowances.

2)

Challenges	Description	Solutions
Bank Card Shortage / Slow Distribution	Direct payment project was initially implemented via virtual cards in the TVET sector. When distribution of handheld cards started around March 2023, reports of insufficient bank cards, related delays and queues arose.	Bank cards have been made available to students and distributions are ongoing at universities. However, the multiple registration cycles in TVET sector continue to complicate logistics.
Partner Dependency	NSFAS relies on manual partner reports, causing delays and inefficiencies. Colleges also rely on manual reports being given to them by partners	An integrated reporting module is being developed to allow for automated sharing of reports for smoother operations.
Cyber Attack	Instances of cyber-attacks threaten student accounts and system integrity and cases of alleged fraud.	Partners are continuously being engaged to implement robust cybersecurity measures, safeguarding against cyber threats and unauthorized access, and ensuring student security.
Non-responsiveness/ Delays in Query Handling	Both students and institutions complain about not getting through to the partner call centres. Emailed queries not responded to.	Partners are given feedback directly through bi-weekly meetings held between NSFAS, the partners and the colleges, so that they look at improving their capacity.
Partner Capacity Limitations	Long queues at card distribution points because partners do not have adequate resources to service the points.	Partners are given feedback directly through bi-weekly meetings held between NSFAS, the partners and the colleges so that they improve their capacity.
Partner/College Relationship Issues	Some Partners commit to meetings but fail to attend, causing dissatisfaction and potential protests.	Ensure partners attend meetings, address concerns, and foster cooperation to prevent disruptions and maintain positive relationships.
NSFAS Data Remediation Impact	Defunding and funding status changes strained the relationship between NSFAS and the stakeholders and affects integrity of the direct payment method as students are not able to differentiate between NSFAS and partner glitches. Poor systems integration has meant that Students’ NSFAS portal reflect a positive (funded) status, while NSFAS internal system reflect a negative (unfunded) student, resulting in students being turned away by the partner.	NSFAS is working extensively at gaining student confidence through proper working and integrated systems and integration between student portal and internal system.
Registration Template Errors	Errors in registration templates lead to processing delays and blocking of allowances until correction requests from institutions are implemented.	System enhancements are being developed to put in place technology-driven mechanisms to identify and rectify incorrect allowance claims.
Students say the direct payment charges are excessive.	Students find direct payment charges excessive and are lobbying for a fee structure review.	Fee structure review will start with further engagements.
Underage Students' Onboarding process	There has been a delay in the development of a FICA compliant process to KYC underage students.	Partners have introduced a solution for underage students.

(3) The total number NSFAS beneficiaries who passed at universities are 390 431. The total number of NSFAS beneficiaries who failed at universities are 102 252.

The total number of NSFAS beneficiaries who passed at TVET colleges are 108 161. The total number of NSFAS beneficiaries who failed at TVET colleges are 90 779.

On the question of number of students who dropped out, NSFAS will be working in conjunction with institutions to finalize this number.

Reply:

(a) NSFAS delegated two teams led by senior officials to visit a sample of 10 universities and 20 TVET Colleges over a ten-day period from 11 September to 22 September with the objective of engaging students and institutions on the challenges they are confronting. NSFAS also established continuous engagements with student leaders in areas where issues persist.

(b) The reasons for withdrawing funding from students are as follows:

• Applications rejected after re-assessment of Financial Eligibility (FE) criteria using new SARS data,
• Applications rejected after updated Academic Eligibility (AE) assessment results, and
• Applications rejected because of exceeding the N+ rule.

(c) The number of students defunded since 01 January 2023 is 28378.

(d) Service providers charge students a fixed monthly fee of R12 for a specific bundle of transactions. Further, additional charges arise because of student transactional behaviour for transactions outside of the bundled transactions for example repeated viewing of balance of funds in the student account or excessive transactions.

Reply:

TVET COLLEGES

a) The direct payment process was introduced at TVET colleges in the last quarter of 2022, with the first payment made in November 2022, although engagements had started in September 2022. The 2023 academic year saw a continuation of this allowance payment method across all 50 TVET colleges.

To fully support the students with this new direct payments process, during the January / February student registration period, the TVET institutional support team, through the NSFAS Servicing Administrators, conducted working visits at their assigned institutions. During this period, the NSFAS team spent a month deployed in the regions, from 16 January 2023 to 17 February 2023. After this period, there has been instances where some colleges have been visited on an ad hoc basis dependent on what issues the college was facing.

b) (i) Most recently the NSFAS Team was deployed to TVET colleges for the purposes of assisting with challenges, including direct payments, from Monday 18 September 2023 to Friday 22 September 2023.

(ii) The teams were at the colleges for a period of a week.

c) Number of students who ultimately successfully completed KYC as a result of this week cannot be specified, as the KYC process takes place on the direct payment partner platform.

UNIVERSITIES

a) Preparing for the direct payments made for July 2023 allowances, NSFAS initiated a comprehensive process. Initially, NSFAS working with the direct Payment partner began by actively collaborating with institutions and the Student Representative Council (SRC) to define the procedural steps and address any queries or concerns they might have had. Subsequently, during the Month of July and August 2023 NSFAS dispatched resources to these institutions, providing valuable assistance during the onboarding process and offering timely responses to any inquiries that arose.

b) I) Continuing in its commitment to streamline the payment process, NSFAS, in conjunction with its direct payment partners, maintains ongoing engagement with institution management and the SRCs. This proactive approach ensures that any identified issues are promptly addressed. Whenever necessary for NSFAS to visit institution, additional resources are deployed to work closely with institutions, in ensuring that all outstanding matters are effectively resolved by NSFAS and the direct payment partners.

ii) It is not possible to specify the exact number of students who successfully completed the Know Your Customer (KYC) process this week, as the KYC procedure occurs on the direct payment partner's platform.

Reply:

a) The historical student loan book value:

As at year ended 31 March 2022, the nominal value of the student loan book was R41.0bn (2021: R40.3bn). The net/carrying value of the student loan book, after considering the adjustments in respect of the actuarial valuation, is R5.1bn (2021: R6.4bn).

b) Debt that has been settled:

During the year ended 31 March 2022 the entity recovered R303m (2021: R388m). The recoveries including debtors that has partially and fully settled their NSFAS debts.

c) Debt written off:

Write offs during the year ended 31 March 2022 because of debtors being deceased amounted to R120m (2021: R114m). This is included in the total aggregated valuation adjustments processed.

Reply:

NSFAS currently does not categorize as specified above. Financial assessment is based on household income (threshold) of R350 000 for non-disability and 600 000 for disability applicants.

Reply:

a) The Department has studied the allegations against Fintech companies and regards them as very serious. The Department has engaged the NSFAS board on several occasions and is awaiting Werksmans Attorneys’ findings so that any decision taken is guided by verifiable facts and evidence, is lawful, reasonable, and procedurally fair as per legal prescripts derived from our constitution, and related legislation, including the Public Administrative Justice Act of 2000. In addition, the Department has despatched a senior official to be incorporated into the Appeals Committee to assist with tracking progress and developing solutions to arising problems.

b) The Department regrets that some students have been affected by the systems introduced by the Fintech companies. The Department has been advised that NSFAS has sent a team of senior officials to ten of the most affected institutions to engage the students and understand the challenges they are experiencing with the Fintech companies. The team will be concluding their report on 22 September 2023. It is expected that they will numerate all issues, and resolve them with necessary alacrity, including finalising a Change Management Strategy.

Reply:

(1)

a) The project to erect a fence surrounding the land declared as the Meerkat National Park, which includes the core site of the SKA, is managed by the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO). A tender for the construction of the fence was published on 13 June 2023 and closed on 11 August 2023. SARAO is currently evaluating the submissions received. The project is expected to be completed approximately 30 months after the award of the tender.

b) SANParks was appointed to manage the NRF land acquired for the purpose of hosting the SKA project. The NRF concluded a management agreement with SANParks and the land was subsequently declared as a national Park. SANParks has developed a park management plan which sets out the long-term vision, objectives and strategies for the park. The Park Management Plan was approved by the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment on 29 September 2022.

c) The area declared as the National Park is currently under the management of SANParks. The following management measures are being implemented:

1. putting in place the necessary physical, human and financial resources required to run the Meerkat National Park;
2. introducing measures and mechanisms for water management;
3. rolling out general security measures through demarcation and identification of the park, and enhanced infrastructure such as inspection roads;
4. implementing an alien invasive species management programme through the Extended Public Works Program (EPWP) resources;
5. implementing a ‘cleaning and greening’ initiative which employed up to 120 youths from the local communities; and
6. assisting farmers to maintain their boundary fences as an interim mitigation measure whilst the Meerkat National Park fence is being erected.

2.  As part of its socioeconomic development initiatives in the SKA area the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) continues to provide internet connectivity to the people in the area, including the farmers. To date, 368 individuals are receiving subsidised broadband internet services via commercial satellite service providers. These programs continue to be reviewed on an ongoing basis to ensure competitive service offerings and pricing.

Reply:

a) The core responsibility of a Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) is to develop a Sector Skills Plan (SSP) as mandated by the Skills Development Act (Act No. 97 of 1998). SETAs facilitate the delivery of sector-specific skills interventions that enable the achievement of the outcomes of the National Skills Development Plan (NSDP) and other applicable policy instruments. Research is critical in this regard, as SETAs are required to conduct research to identify occupations/skills in demand in their respective sectors.

The Department develops (and annually updates) the Sector Skills Plan Framework, guiding the SETAs, which takes into account amongst others, change drivers such as : regulatory and policy issues such as government legislation (i.e. White Paper for Post School Education and Training, National Plan for Post School Education and Training, etc); national and provincial plans which drive growth and development; economic growth or decline in a sector; changes to the nature of work such as changes in technology, work organization, production and process innovation; the business environment such as export markets, consumer preferences, and competitiveness in the market, globalization and others; immigration and emigration and social issues such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, health and safety issues, etc. The SSPs include chapters such as Sector Profile; Key Skills Drivers; Occupational Shortages and Skills Gaps; SETA Partnerships and SETA Monitoring and Evaluation. Other Labour Market Intelligence Instruments such as National List of Occupations in High Demand; Critical Skills List; Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan Skills Strategy guide the implementation of skills development interventions. Subsequently, each SETA develops an Annual Performance Plan and Strategic Plan (as tabled in Parliament) and is monitored through the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education, Science and Innovation and other parliamentary processes. Annual Reports are compiled and tabled to Parliament, monitoring the performance of the SETAs. Consequently, the Department as directed by the Skills Development Act (Act No.97 of 1998) also enters into Service Level Agreements with the SETAs.

(b)

Year 2020/21: (b) Total number of programs have been implemented in the provinces and beneficiaries trained and completed programs
Province	(aa) Beneficiaries trained	(bb)Beneficiaries completed
Eastern Cape	18 944	12 500
Free State	7 101	5 546
Gauteng	57 167	43 038
KwaZulu Natal	22 243	18 389
Limpopo	20 384	19 805
Mpumalanga	8 862	8 804
North West	7 247	7 192
Northern Cape	4 787	3 835
Western Cape	18453	14 620
Total	165 188	133 729

Year 2021/22: (b) Total number of programs have been implemented in the provinces and beneficiaries trained and completed programs
Province	(aa) Beneficiaries trained	(bb)Beneficiaries completed
Eastern Cape	28 929	13 963
Free State	18 210	28 020
Gauteng	60 591	43 362
KwaZulu Natal	33 069	19 919
Limpopo	20 752	14 580
Mpumalanga	12 291	9 196
North West	11 422	8 649
Northern Cape	5 890	4 804
Western Cape	23377	15 250
Total	214 531	157 743

Year 2022/23: (b) Total number of programs have been implemented in the provinces and beneficiaries trained and completed programs
Province	(aa) Beneficiaries trained	(bb)Beneficiaries completed
Eastern Cape	23159	13115
Free State	11630	5581
Gauteng	79105	46643
KwaZulu Natal	41827	21865
Limpopo	27749	19929
Mpumalanga	17731	10585
North West	9957	6951
Northern Cape	8450	4061
Western Cape	30531	14748
Total	250 139	143 478

(c)(i) The SETAs and the Department conduct tracer studies, to track the beneficiaries of the SETA skills development interventions on a regular basis, one of these studies was conducted by Rhodes University, and its outcomes are summarised as follows.

One of the key measures of interest in any tracer study of graduates or completers is the employment rate. If the percentages of completers in Workplace Based Learning Programs (WBL) programs in self-employment and employment are added together, the result is an employment rate of roughly 80% for learnership completers and 60% for those who have recently completed apprenticeships. Therefore, the employment rate among the sample of SETA-funded WBL completers is very high. A key difference between the completers of apprenticeship and learnership programs, however, is that a third of apprentices were not working at the time of the survey compared with about 17% of learnership completers. Based on this alone, one conclusion is that learnership programs appear to be more closely associated with a smooth transition into employment. At the same time, only very small numbers of WBL completers reported studying further after the completion of their training program (6% of apprentices and 3% of learnership completers).

WBL completers who are employed, one of the key findings is that nearly all completers (who were employed at the time of the survey) within each WBL program found employment within six months after the completion of their WBL program. There were only slight differences in the percentage of apprenticeship (89.5%) and learnership (96.3%) completers who found employment within a six-month period. In terms of employment characteristics, the findings suggest that apprenticeship completers were more likely (43.6%) to be employed in a permanent position relative to learnership completers (22.3%). The vast majority (58.4%) of learnership completers were employed in fixed-term positions at the time of the survey. While this would suggest that an apprenticeship is a more direct route to stable employment, about 29.3% of apprenticeship completers were in casual employment (compared with just under a fifth of learnership completers). Therefore, while permanent employment was the modal form of employment for the completers of apprenticeships, a substantial group was also in the most unstable type of employment relationship (casual employment).

(c) (ii) Notably, in the tracer study by Rhodes University, is that the share of WBL completers in self-employment is less than one percent. One of the artisan tracer studies conducted by the Department indicated that 2% (whilst 79% were employed) were self-employed. About 15% of those self-employed individuals indicated that they saw an opportunity for self-employment.

(c) (iii) see as referred above.

Reply:

1. The findings of an International Finance Corporation study which was supported by the Department of Higher Education and Training (the Department) are that as of 2020, there were 125 891 beds by public student accommodation providers (TVET Colleges and Universities) and 97 219 beds by private student accommodation providers.
2. We will need to request this data from the institutions. We will therefore await advice on whether we should proceed to do so and how long should we give them to provide such information. We may not receive a response from all of them irrespective of the response time we give them.
3. The survey was conducted by the International Finance Corporation in 2020, and it was supported by the Department. The report was released in April 2021.
4. The report is attached at Annexure A of this response.
5. The Strategic Planning Unit may have incorrectly reported that there was a draft strategy and that it was approved by the Director-General. The strategy was never drafted. We will therefore await advice on the way forward.

Reply:

The definition of “indigenous languages” in the Language Policy Framework for Public Higher Education Institutions, published on 30 October 2020 has been revised in line with legal advice the Department of Higher Education and Training has received on the matter. The revised definition was published on 7 July 2023 in Government Gazette no 48923, under the title, “Amendment of the Definition on the Language Policy Framework For Public Higher Education Institutions, Determined in Terms of Section 27(2) of the Higher Education Act, 101 of 1997 as amended”.

Reply:

The Department met with NSFAS board and requested that they provide a turn-around strategy to the Minister. Furthermore, NSFAS submitted an audit plan to the Minister on 04 September 2023, which the Department will monitor monthly. In addition, the Department has been engaging with the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) and NSFAS to ensure further research on the price cap of student accommodation is concluded and used to inform policy decisions. The Department intends to extend the IFC focus to include an assessment of the accreditation of accommodation system established by NSFAS with the intent to resolve the grading system. The Department facilitated a meeting between National Treasury and NSFAS, and with the assistance of Information Technology (IT) experts, advised NSFAS on a more appropriate IT strategy before additional funds were transferred to NSFAS to support IT improvements. With regards to the payment system, the Department is awaiting the SIU and Werksmans Attorneys’ findings before it makes further decisions.

Reply:

DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND INNOVATION:

Name of Institution/public entity

(a)

(b)

(c)

(i)

(ii)

(i)

(ii)

(i)

(ii)

(aa) 2020-21

(bb) 2021-22

(cc) 2022-23 financial years

(aa) 2020-21

(bb) 2021-22

(cc) 2022-23 financial years

(aa)

(bb)

(cc)

(aa)

(bb)

(cc)

(aa)

(bb)

(cc)

(aa)

(bb)

(cc)

R’000

R’000

R’000

R’000

R’000

R’000

DSI

374

382

179

N/A

N/A

N/A

Creative Harvest

Creative Harvest

UVO Communication

N/A

N/A

N/A

600

200

200

N/A

N/A

N/A

ASSAf

N/A

N/A

N/A

Nil

Nil

Nil

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

Nil

Nil

Nil

NRF

N/A

N/A

N/A

79

72

95

N/A

N/A

N/A

Litha Communication

South Kingdom

Shereno Printers

N/A

N/A

N/A

Nil

100

100

SANSA

N/A

N/A

N/A

Nil

Nil

Nil

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

Nil

Nil

Nil

TIA

N/A

N/A

N/A

Nil

Nil

Nil

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

Nil

Nil

Nil

HSRC

N/A

N/A

N/A

61

60

Nil

N/A

N/A

N/A

Kashan Advertising

Kashan Advertising

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

300

150

Nil

CSIR

N/A

N/A

N/A

145

161

170

N/A

N/A

N/A

EPI Creative (Pty) Ltd

Lebone Litho Printers

Blackmoon Design and Advertising

N/A

N/A

N/A

250

250

150

DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING:

REPLY:

In relation to the Department of Higher Education and Training, the following information has relevance:

(a) What total amount did the entity pay for the printed copies of the integrated annual reports in the following financial years:
Organisation	(aa) 2020-21	(i) who were the suppliers?	(ii) total number of copies of the report printed?	(bb) 2021-22	(i) who were the suppliers?	(ii) total number of copies of the report printed?	(cc) 2022-23	(i) who were the suppliers?	(ii) total number of copies of the report printed?
Department of Higher Education and Training	R140 106.82	Delisiwe Trading t/a CTP Publishers and Printers (Ltd)	150 printed copies and 20 CD’s	R176 707.66	Delisiwe Trading t/a CTP Publishers and Printers (Ltd)	150 printed copies and 20 CD’s	R237 532.50	Shereno Printers (cc)	200 printed copies and 20 Memory Sticks (USB) (Not yet printed)

In relation to Public Entities the following information has relevance:

	(a) What total amount did the entity pay for the printed copies of the integrated annual reports in the following financial years:
Entity:	(aa) 2020-21	(i) who were the suppliers?	(ii) total number of copies of the report printed?	(bb) 2021-22	(i) who were the suppliers?	(ii) total number of copies of the report printed?	(cc) 2022-23	(i) who were the suppliers?	(ii) total number of copies of the report printed?
1. FOODBEV	R0.00	N/A	0 (online submission and distribution)	R 24 971.00	Production X	100	R99 375.00	Epic Creative	250
2. HWSETA	R66 390.07	Cre8tor	350	R 84 888.40	Sand Studio	210	R89 679.91	Law print	605
3. CHE	R0.00	N/A	NA	R0.00	N/A	N/A	R0.00	N/A	N/A
4. ETDP SETA	R47 937.75	Shereno Printers	100 copies	R61 237.50	Matcom Printers	150	R63 238.50	Scarlet Studios	130
5. SASSETA	R125 546.75	Brown Block Solutions	200	R81 166,43	Brown Block Solutions	150	R137 500	Fargocure (PTY) LTD	300
6. FASSET	R176 964.48	Shereno Printers CC	300	R207 280.02	Kashan Advertising Pty (Ltd)	200	R142 617.02	UVO Communications Pty (Ltd)	200
7. QCTO	R70 987,75	Branding Formula	250	R83 540,60	45 Media	100	R85 380.60	45 Media	100
8. AGRISETA	R183 760	Through the line	500	R172 000	Rock Bottom Graphic	500	R249 147,50	45 Media	500
9. Services SETA	R0	N/A	No copies were printed	R105 877.05	Miolo Design Shop	300	R0	UVO Communication, Design and Print	Not yet printed. However, 200 copies are planned for printing at a total cost of R85 763.55
10. SAQA	R78 993.50	Pure Brown Designs	None – Only Web based due to COVID 19	R39 675.00	Milk Brown	None – Only Web based due to COVID 19	R248 684.68	BlackMoon	50
11. CETA	R519 916.80	Five Star Communications	200	R336 232.45	Five Star Communications	200	R434 814.00	INCE (PTY) LTD	100
12. MERSETA	R337 467.50	Litha Communications	200	R337 467.50	Litha Communications	200	R421 218.09	Litha Communications	200
13 MQA	R155 540.95	Milk Brown Designs and communications	200 PRINTED, 150 USB, 150 CD’s	R242 691.40	Litha Communications	200 PRINTED, 150 USB, 150 CD’s	R247 017.70	Litha Communications	200 PRINTED, 150 USB, 150 CD’s
14. TETA	R90 620.00	Scarlet Studios	600	R104 431.50	Scarlet Studios	300	R99 314.00	Indima Njongo Marketing and Communication	400
15. FP&M SETA	R233 421	Busi Ntuli Communications	50 printed copies and 50 USB due to Covid	R345 828	Active Brands	400	R276 069	Active Brands	200
16. BANK SETA	R57,785.00	Busi Ntuli (Pty) Ltd	200	R71 882.00	Donna Reid CC	150	R88 235.00	Donna Reid CC	150
17. NSF	R113 861.508	Shereno Printers	200	R106 410.99	Mudau Picture Framers t/a Framefun	200	R131 948.38	Ndabase Printing Solutions	200
18. CHIETA	R68 880.38	Lebone Litho Printers	300	R76 880.38	Libone Litho Printers	300	R76 880.38	Libone Litho Printers	300
19. LGSETA	R98 258.30	Creativity Design & Marketing (Pty) Ltd	200	R104 880.00	45th Media (Pty) Ltd	200	R167 555.00	Moshate Communications	300 (Still in progress)
20. INSETA	R200 910.75	BlackMoon Advertising	300	R222 376.94	BlackMoon Advertising	300	R250 260.13	Epic Creative	300
21. CATHS SETA	R89 567.75	Oranje Printers (Pty) Ltd	150	R229 827.50	Dlloyd Creative Enterprises (Pty) Ltd	150	R145 626.95	Unique Communications (Pty) Ltd	130
22. W&RSETA	R428 950.00	-45th Media -Kashan Advertising (Pty) Ltd	1000	R269 244.90	-45th Media -Msomi Africa	600	R 344 008.70	45th Media	600 Planned (Not yet printed)
23. PSETA	R0.00	Ren-form cc	No hard copies printed due to Covid-19	R17 800.00	Ren-form cc	100	R0.00	N/A	PSETA will not print hard copies of the 2022/23
24. MICT SETA	R 213 312.81	Litha Communications	500	R 183 302.95	45th Media	352	Not yet invoiced as at 13 Sep 2023. R198 000.00	45th Media	352
25. EWSETA	R78 660.00	EPI Creative	120	R59 800	EPI Creative	50	R0.00	N/A	N/A
26. NSFAS	R70,189	Digital on Demand t/a Print on Demand	TBC – invoice being retrieved	R85,183   R169,678	Busi Ntuli Communications (2019/20) Sengwayo Holdings (2020/21)	300 300	*None to date	*None to date	*None to date

*NSFAS 2021/22 Annual Reports have not yet been printed.

Reply:

(1) The Universities and TVET Colleges will be implementing the Safety and Security Minimum Norms and Standards upon finalisation. The TVET Colleges blueprint document has been developed by the South African Police Services and accepted by the Department. The Department is currently working on the implementation plan which will require funding. The blueprint document for universities is currently under development by the South African Police Services and it will be presented to the Department and university management upon finalisation.

(2)(a) The Department has not selected any colleges that will implement the Safety and Security Minimum Norms and Standards however, those colleges which are in the hot-spots areas will be prioritised upon consultation with relevant parties and stakeholders.

(2)(b) The criteria that will be used to implement the Safety and Security Minimum Norms and Standards will be determined through a consultative process, therefore it has not been determined yet.

Reply:

The Department has plans to close institutions that operate without being registered with the relevant bodies.

a) Plans and processes which are followed to close illegal colleges are guided by both the Constitution and the law enforcement agents. Article 29(3) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa requires every private provider of education and training to be registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). The purpose of registration is to ensure that private providers of education and training operate within the law, have the necessary resources, capacity and expertise to offer acceptable standards of higher education.

The Department maintains 2 Registers which are published on its website at www.dhet.gov.za for the benefit of the public. These are the Register of Private Higher Education Institutions and the Register of Private Colleges. The Register of Private Higher Education Institutions also lists all the illegal colleges to alert the public, using electronic media.

b) The Department is required to follow specific procedures before it approaches the South African Police Services (SAPS) for assistance, these include:

1. Once the Department identifies an illegal institution, it must issue a warning letter which indicates the timeframe for a response.
2. Should the institution admit to wrongdoing and agree to terminate its services, then the onus rests with it to inform students and refund the fees paid by students. Students are also advised to seek legal assistance and/or approach the Small Claims Court should refunds not be forthcoming.
3. The Department is required to file a case with SAPS in terms of the relevant legislation should the institution desist or not respond or persist in operating illegally. Private higher education institutions are further listed on the list of bogus colleges.
4. Thereafter, the responsibility lies with SAPS and the Prosecuting Authority to execute further steps to address the conduct of the institution.
5. It must be noted that the Department engages extensively with the institution before it approaches SAPS for closure.

Reply:

Response A: Provision of certificates to TVET students on time – DHET

1. The Department of Higher education and Training (DHET) is mandated to issue certificates within three months (90 working days) after students after the release of results to “eligible students’, meaning those students who have satisfied the requirements for respective qualifications. The DHET draws its mandate from the CET Act of 2006 which empowers the Department with the authority to conduct, administer and manage the GETC, NATED Report 190/1 and NC (V) examinations and assessment processes. The Certification backlog was addressed by 31 March 2022 and a report presented to PCHEST by my office. It is therefore imperative to clarify to members of this house the issues that in the public space may still be construed as certification backlog whereas the real issue is the matter of historical records.

2. However, there are various reasons why some students are not receiving their certificates. It is therefore imperative to provide the definition of what is termed Certification as well as the criteria thereof.

3. Working Definition:

- “Certification” is defined as “all eligible students who met the minimum certification requirements for various qualifications who were issued with certificates within three months (business days) after results have been approved by the quality assurers”. The bulk of the students who fall within this category are those who satisfied the certification requirements in one examination sitting and were issued with certificates within three months.

- “Certification backlog” is defined as “all eligible students who met the minimum certification requirements for various qualifications who were not issued with certificates within three months after results have been approved by the quality assurers

4. Certification criteria are described as follows:

• NC(V) qualification: candidates have to pass all seven subjects as required in the policy.
• NATED qualification: candidates have to pass a minimum of 4 subjects in the correct subject combinations.
• GETC: ABET candidates have to pass a minimum of 5 subjects (with a total of 120 credits).

There are also key obstacles that are contributing to the non-issuance of certificates to TVET students. Among others are:

• Part submission of both Internal and External marks by colleges before resulting for Nated R190/1; NC(V) and GETC qualifications
• System functionality and alignment across the full system – non automatic combination of results after the student has accumulated the results over multiple examinations session
• Understanding of Business Rules for certification by students at all points of data processing

5. Observation

In the main students who struggle to receive their certification within the stipulated timeframe are those who sits for multiple examinations sessions in order for them to satisfy the qualification/s requirements and thereafter apply for combinations. There are students who also involved in examinations irregularities that need further investigation for results to be finalised before certifications can be processed and released.

The DHET has a clear system in place where after certificates for eligible students are printed, the TVET section through the Chief Directorate National Examinations and Assessment, package the documents according to colleges where students sat for their examinations, generates waybills for dispatch to the respective destinations through courier services.

Under normal circumstances, where students met the requirements to be certified and the security paper printed by Government Printing Works is available, the DHET is not found non-compliant in this regard. The dilemma is only when student do not even collect the certificates from their respective colleges and chooses to seek the certificates using social media and other platforms without checking with their colleges.

The DHET works collaboratively with Quality councils, namely QCTO and Umalusi in matters relating to certification of students as well as SAQA for the verification of qualifications for those qualifications offered by the Department.

B: What sustainable plans have been put in place to eliminate the problem due to its socio-economic impact?

The DHET has also embarked on expanding the already available eServices on government portal which deals with Examination results, namely the DHET EXAMS Equeries Solution for TVET college System. I have launched this system in 2015 but planning to re – launch the same but updated system again before the end of 2023. My team in attempting to avert the recurrence of this anomaly have enhanced the system by developing another service, namely eTranscript/s, an automated system where students can access their academic records as well as receiving the status of their eCertificate report whilst waiting for a printed hardcopy from their colleges.

Reply:

The Independent Assessor Reports over the years have highlighted a number of factors that contribute to governance failures. These range from the inability of councils, and in some cases the chairperson and deputy chairperson in particular, to provide strategic leadership and direction resulting in the abdication of its responsibilities to the Management; role confusion and contestation; fraught relationships between Council and Management; the phenomenon of the inability of council members nominated by internal/external constituencies to distinguish between the interests of the constituencies and the interests of the institution; the misunderstanding of the principle of cooperative governance; unacceptable and counter-productive conduct by some council members; non-adherence to good-governance practices, institutional rules and procedures.

Some of the systemic interventions that are being considered besides those provided for by the Higher Education Act, 101 of 1997 as amended include:

• The Resuscitatation of the role of the University Council Chair Forum (UCCF-SA)
• A sectorially-coordinated capacity building initiatives for induction of members. There is a council capacity development programme developed by the Department in partnership with UCCF-SA on offering induction and continuous development of members. This programme was envisaged to include two streams, the Basic and Advanced level. The basic training designed for new members of council, would explore the roles and responsibilities of Councils, the legislative and policy framework, as well as the distinctive context of academic institutions. The advanced training level designed for council members who have already attended the basic training or serving a second term, would explore various themes, namely institutional autonomy vs. accountability; council relationship with other governance structures and management; chairing of university councils; governance and management performance and evaluation; financial management and reporting etc. It may be important to make these compulsory for serving or potential members of councils.
• Development of a code of Good Governance for HEIs and a Governance Oversight Framework consisting of modern, transparent, and accountable governance arrangements.

• Ensuring that each member of Council is a paid member if the IODSA and any deregistered members be assumed not a member in good standing.
• Regular Ethics workshops and assessments to gauge the ethical standing of the member.

Reply:

The Independent Assessor’ s report is lengthy (316 pages) and makes reference to the following concerns, amongst others:

• Governance Structures: Council functioning found not to be optimal with an outdated statute, bloated committee structure and excessive meetings over the years. The student governance model found not to be optimal with an outdated SRC Constitution, SRC structure not fit for purpose, the centralised model is a disservice to students since all students are based in the regions, and excessive benefits to SRC members. The principle of co-operative governance appears to have been abused and weaponised, thus creating a difficult environment for those entrusted to manage the institution.
• The functioning and efficacy of management is not optimal, with the members working as a coherent team; and in a number instances, they too constitute part of the problem.
• The Registrar’s Portfolio in relation to the management of academic affairs, registration and certification matters: the Report describes a number of systemic and structural challenges that point to the dysfunctionality of the Office. These include the size of the portfolio, staffing and poor consequence management; outdated policies; very little evidence of a student centric culture at UNISA with substandard levels of service delivery across most functions from application to qualification audits; high levels of student frustrations stemming from a poor student support environment; poor change management around the transition to online examinations and assessments in response to Covid-19; poor enrolment management resulting in R186 million in a 5 year period over-spent; poor data management as demonstrated in UNISA’s failure to protect students’ data exposing students to exploitation by fraudulent tutors.
• Financial management, supply chain management, and procurement: The report mentions SCM policy violations, financial irregularities, internal control weaknesses, fraud and, possibly, criminality. When malfeasance is uncovered, disciplinary action is either not forthcoming, or slow to implement. Instances of tender manipulation, overpayments and double payment for the same work, backdating of contracts, tender splitting and related misdemeanours are described in the report. The Report also noted the under-utilisation of the Infrastructure and Efficiency Grant, and the unacceptable state of maintenance in some regions, as well as payment of services that were not rendered.
• Human Resources Matters: confusion around the review of the organisational structure, irregular recruitment practices, prevalent acting and secondment appointments with many cases of persons seconded or appointed to act into positions up to 3 post levels higher than their substantive positions, and non-compliance with HR policies. The University is rife with a culture of fear, intimidation and bullying, the poor functioning of the Unisa Bargaining Forum (UBF), undue influence of unions in appointments, and a culture of lack of consequence management.
• Information and Communication Technology (ICT): instability of leadership in the ICT environment, implementation challenges of the newly approved strategy to improve the ICT environment, poor contract management resulting in UNISA losing licences, and outdated ICT infrastructure, are some of the observations in the report.

The above, amongst others, was compounded by leakage of documents and negative media reports which have negatively affected the reputation of UNISA.

Reply:

(1) (a) My Department, which is the Department of Higher Education and Training, has identified nine (9) illegal institutions of higher learning in the past financial year and (b) all 9 of them were closed down because they were (i) (aa) operating without registration with the Department as either Private Higher Education Institutions in terms of the Higher Education (HE) Act 101 of 1997 or Private Colleges as required by the Continuing Education and Training (CET) Act 16 of 2006, (bb) neither were they accredited by the Sector Education and Training Authorities and / or accredited by the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations in its capacity as the custodian of Occupational Qualifications on the Occupational Qualifications Sub-Framework.

(ii) The nine institutions were defrauding parents and learners while offering qualifications without registration by the Department and/or without accreditation by the Quality Councils such as the Council on Higher Education, the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations and Umalusi.

(2) The Department has a dedicated Directorate which ensures that private institutions of higher learning are registered with the Department and meet the minimum requirements for registration as set out in both the HE Act and the CET Act and their attendant Regulations. This Directorate works very closely with the Quality Councils mentioned herein to ensure that private institutions are accredited for the qualifications they propose to offer and that the qualifications are registered on the National Qualifications Framework managed by the South African Qualifications Authority. To ensure that parents and students do not fall prey to unregistered and/or unaccredited private institutions, the Department, through its Career Development Services and in conjunction with the Quality Councils, consistently embarks on campaigns such as KHETA – Apply Now, Nelson Mandela Career Guidance Day and others to raise awareness among the parents and students on what they must look out for before they enrol at private institutions.

Reply:

a) Minister is awaiting the final report of the panel that is investigating various matters at the university. Notwithstanding, Minister’s authority regarding none-disclosure agreements is explained in section 41 of the Higher Education Act read with Regulations 6 and 7 of the Regulations for Reporting by Public Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). Based on the latter, Minister has the legal right to request the Council to furnish him with the information contained in the none-disclosure agreement. He can also verify the financial component of the none-disclosure agreement by studying the audited annual financial statements contained in the Annual Report once the report is submitted to the Department.

b) All relevant information will be available in the Annual Report of the university - all annual reports are accessible to the public.

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