Latest news with #PaballoThekiso
IOL News
5 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
NSFAS funding model overhaul: What you need to know
South Africa is experiencing a surge in demand for built student accommodation, with a significant shortfall of over 500 000 beds needing to be addressed in the sector. Image: Paballo Thekiso Higher Education Minister Buti Manamela announced on Tuesday an urgent overhaul of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funding model. The Minister outlined the department's vision during a media briefing in Pretoria for the post-school education sector and emphasised that stabilising NSFAS is a top priority in the government's education reform plan. The new model is expected to be developed within the next three months. The decision to implement these changes comes after widespread concerns about governance, delivery failures, and funding gaps at NSFAS. Manamela acknowledged that "there's been fundamental challenges at NSFAS" but also highlighted that 800,000 students have currently received their allowances. To address the pressing issues, several actions are being taken: The Minister has instructed the CEO and Chairperson of NSFAS to convene an urgent briefing to inform the nation, especially students, on the current state of NSFAS and the challenges it faces. Engagements with Treasury have already begun to fill existing gaps in student funding. A Post-School Education and Training task team will be established to lead the broader overhaul of the post-school education system. All NSFAS issues are being addressed to ensure access, boost accountability, and restoring public trust in the scheme. Minister Manamela stated: "In the next three months, we will stabilise the National Student Financial Aid scheme and set in motion a sustainable student funding model". Additionally, an extensive briefing detailing these plans will be held in early September. Last week, reports emerged that NSFAS' student accommodation management processes and the involvement of third-party partners were under a comprehensive legal review. The student financier said it is currently awaiting the outcome of this review and will implement the recommendations to enhance transparency, integrity, and efficiency in its payment processes. IOL
IOL News
06-08-2025
- Business
- IOL News
NSFAS under legal review: enhancing student accommodation management and third-party partnerships
South Africa is experiencing a surge in demand for built student accommodation, with a significant shortfall of over 500 000 beds needing to be addressed in the sector. Image: Paballo Thekiso The National Student Financial Aid Scheme's student accommodation management processes and the involvement of third-party partners are currently under a comprehensive legal review. The student financier said it is currently awaiting the outcome of this review and will implement the recommendations to enhance transparency, integrity, and efficiency in its payment processes. 'NSFAS remains dedicated to supporting students and ensuring the timely and accurate disbursement of funds. We appreciate the cooperation of all stakeholders and remain committed to resolving these matters swiftly.' In a statement intended to provide clarity on the current status of payments related to student accommodation, NSFAS said it wished to reaffirm that payments for accommodation are made exclusively for claims that have undergone and satisfied all validation and verification procedures. It said the non-payment may result from claims involving students who are not funded, claims lacking confirmation from relevant institutions, or cases where registration data was not received before the payment deadline. 'NSFAS remains committed to safeguarding students from adverse outcomes, including eviction and safety risks, and continues to collaborate closely with institutions to resolve these issues swiftly and effectively.' The entity said, "It does not confirm owing R62 million in arrears from January 2024 to July 2025." "The Private Housing Student Association (PHSA) is an association representing landlords. NSFAS directly processes payments to individual landlords and does not make payments to associations. Furthermore, PHSA has not furnished a detailed breakdown of the claims they allege to be outstanding.' Last month, Kagisho Mamabolo, the CEO of PHSA, said thousands of students continued to face uncertainty due to delayed NSFAS accommodation payments and the absence of a sustainable student housing funding model. 'Many private accommodation providers-who account for the majority of available beds-are at financial risk, compromising stability and continuity of services,' Mamabolo said then. The Association said inconsistencies in accreditation frameworks, misaligned university policies, and punitive 5% NSFAS levies imposed by third-party intermediaries have created confusion and additional costs for both students and housing providers. According to NSFAS, a total of R744,406,752 was paid to landlords during the April period in an effort to settle outstanding claims and reduce arrears. NSFAS said it affirms that it has not exhausted its funding for paying landlords. It said payments are made strictly based on validated claims for students who are funded. It said delays in payments can occur due to several factors, including: Students residing in accredited properties but not yet funded Students onboarded at institutions not participating in the pilot program Invoice discrepancies or errors Students qualifying for transport allowances but residing in accredited accommodation Properties are inaccurately accredited with high grades despite not meeting minimum norms and standards Challenges related to the registration data upload portal, which was temporarily closed due to funding constraints. This has resulted in some students facing eviction, as landlords deny re-entry owing to unpaid dues. NSFAS said that it, along with partner institutions, is actively engaging to communicate and address these issues, which have caused hardship for affected students. Independent Media Property
IOL News
10-07-2025
- General
- IOL News
Johannesburg residents to face four-day water outages amid planned maintenance
Johannesburg residents have been advised to brace for water disruptions for four days. Image: File: Paballo Thekiso Residents of Johannesburg have been advised to brace for water disruptions as Johannesburg Water embarks on a series of planned maintenance operation for four days. These necessary repairs, which will roll into mid-month, aim to enhance the city's ageing water infrastructure and include both local fixes and significant regional initiatives. At the heart of the maintenance efforts is an extensive project affecting the Palmiet system, which serves as a lifeline for multiple water systems across the city. Key regions impacted include: *Sandton systems *Alexander Park Reservoir *South Hills Tower *Randjieslaagte Reservoir, *Linksfield Reservoir, and *Midrand systems. #RandWaterMaintenance to affect Johannesburg Water systems from 15 – 18 July 2025 🛠️#JoburgUpdates ^N — Johannesburg Water (@JHBWater) July 10, 2025 Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ The scheduled maintenance is set to take place from 15 July at 5am until 18 July at 8pm, during which significant repairs will be conducted on the O2 Pipeline, a crucial component of the regional water distribution network. Johannesburg Water has warned affected residents to expect low pressure or complete water shortages during this maintenance. The utility has further emphasised the importance of preparing for these potential water shortages and has encouraged residents to utilise reserves wisely during the works. #WaterSupplyInterruption update: Rand Water's cleaning and inspection of the Hartebeeshoek Reservoir is continuing amid challenges encountered — City of Tshwane (@CityTshwane) July 10, 2025
IOL News
01-07-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Urgent calls for community engagement in KwaZulu-Natal's water master plan
KwaZulu-Natal is one of the provinces with the highest water losses in the country, with the 2022 and 2023 no-drop results indicating that the non-revenue water (NRW) averaged 52.6%. Image: Paballo Thekiso / Independent Newspapers KwaZulu-Natal is one of the provinces with the highest water losses in the country, with the 2022 and 2023 no-drop results indicating that the non-revenue water (NRW) averaged 52.6%. This was higher than the global aggregate of 30% and was one of the water provision challenges the KZN Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) stated when they presented their progress report on the KZN Provincial Water Master Plan (PWMP) to the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature Portfolio Committee on Tuesday. Other challenges include no planned maintenance programme in relation to aging infrastructure, and also unplanned/reactive maintenance, which is mostly undertaken. In its presentation, Cogta stated that drinking water quality management remains a challenge in the province, as 21 water systems were found to be in a critical state as per the Blue Drop results published by DWS in December 2023. This has also resulted in a decline in the water quality in Amajuba, King Cetshwayo, uMzinyathi, and Zululand districts. The department has implemented what they term seven pillars in response to some of the challenges. They are: Water resources programme. Water treatment, bulk distribution, and storage. Water reticulation programme. Water conservation/water demand management programme. Financial sustainability and revenue enhancement programme. Operations and maintenance programme. Human resources development programme. In a brief presentation, the uMgeni-uThukela Water also highlighted several infrastructure projects in various stages of implementation, with the upgrade of the KwaMaphumulo treatment plant from 6 to 12 Ml/d and secondary bulk pipelines (9 Ml/d capacity) through the Mshwathi Bulk Water Supply Scheme (BWSS) in Ilembe District Municipality being one of them. A presentation by the eThekwini Municipality Water and Sanitation (EWS) touched on the Water Turnaround Strategy and new bulk water schemes. The strategy addresses 12 key areas of the water business over the short and medium term. A cornerstone of the strategy is to improve the financial position of EWS for the improved maintenance and replacement of assets. Tim Brauteseth, MPL and DA KZN spokesperson on Finance and Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa), was concerned about staff shortages in various entities and non-revenue water figures. 'There must be a clampdown on theft and vandalism of water infrastructure and reduction of algae in the system that is blocking pipes,' he said. Bonginkosi Mngadi, MPL and uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) member, called for more public hearings to listen to the plight of the people on issues of water. Mngadi called for the prioritisation of boreholes throughout the districts, with emphasis on deep rural areas. 'There are issues of water being supplied by tankers that are using municipal budgets. We need to look into the possibility of boreholes rather than spend money on water trucks. Some of these trucks are travelling quite a distance to reach some areas. Harding is confronted with a drought, and bore holes will assist the residents,' he suggested. Dr Celiwe Qhamkile Madlopha, ANC MPL, called for roadshows to explain to the public what the challenges are and what is being done going forward with regard to water supply issues. 'When the community raises challenges, they think it falls on deaf ears because they do not know about the good work being done to address it. I am concerned about service delivery on the ground and the grants not being spent,' she said. Marlaine Nair, chairperson of the KZN Legislature Cogta Portfolio Committee, called for an updated water master plan so that progress can be tracked. 'The planned maintenance and slow implementation are serious concerns for us. Why are municipalities not rolling out plans in place?' she asked. Otto Bonginkosi Kunene, an IFP MPL, was concerned about water and sanitation rollouts in the province, which he believed were critical in rural communities. 'Sanitation is dignity, it remains a slogan and not being felt in rural areas,' he quipped. [email protected]
IOL News
09-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
eThekwini reveals water distribution loss of nearly 60%, 'fix the problem', demand angered residents
While Durban communities grapple with prolonged water outages the eThekwini Municipality has recorded a 57,81% in water distribution losses in its April 2025 financial report. Image: Paballo Thekiso RESIDENTS have accused the eThekwini Municipality of allowing their money to literally go down the drain with "blatant disregard", given the fact that the city's water distribution loss stood at 57.81%. As a result, having water on tap, daily, is like a roll of the dice for many communities in the municipality's area of jurisdiction because they have grown accustomed to constant outages that run for days and weeks in some instances. While there seem no end in sight to eThekwini's water woes, still, ratepayers must brace themselves for possible tariff increases for water and other utilities that the city supplies to residents, in the coming weeks. During an eThekwini Finance Committee meeting in April 2025, the municipality stated in a report that the water loss (57.81%) was above the norm which of 15 to 30%. As it has done in the past, the municipality continued to blame illegal water connections, ageing infrastructure and damage to infrastructure due to the floods, as the breaches in their system. On Thursday, the Reservoir Hills Ratepayers Association (RHRA) demanded immediate action and responses concerning the ongoing and unresolved water supply failures that have affected large parts of Clare Estate and Reservoir Hills. This included an outage on May 5, which left surrounding communities without water for extended periods. Yogesh Naidoo, Director of RHRA stated that the failures were not isolated or unforeseen. Naidoo said that between January 9 and 29, the RHRA issued multiple urgent notices to the municipality detailing: •Over 60 burst pipes reported within days •Repeated supply disruptions, some exceeding 10 days •Failed or substandard repairs leading to immediate re-bursts •Lack of skilled personnel, Pressure Relief Valve (PRV) regulations, and basic resources (e.g. backfill and asphalt) •Nightly cut-offs allegedly linked to the Sherwood 3 Reservoir without public explanation •Total breakdown of the municipality's complaint logging and response systems (call-centre, WhatsApp app). 'From January, the Water and Sanitation Department has repeatedly ignored or inadequately responded to warnings by the ratepayers and Ward 23 Councillor Alicia Kissoon,' he said. Naidoo said that despite the documented failures, including requests to inspect PRVs and commission un-utilised infrastructure built at public expense, no substantive response or action plan was received by RHRA. Naidoo said that the RHRA demanded a comprehensive report outlining: The specific cause of the May 5 outage The current operational status of Sherwood 3 Reservoir and Wiggins Waterworks Details of any planned repairs, scheduled upgrades, or supply interruptions The name and contact details of the senior official responsible for the infrastructure A detailed log of all reported pipe bursts and unresolved complaints in Ward 23 from January 1 to date, including steps taken. Meanwhile, concerned resident Musaddiq Ebrahim said that the Bonela and Chesterville community had experienced water outages, with no supply at all on some days. Ebrahim said the community was at breaking point, which led to residents of Chesterville, who were also connected to the same reservoir, resorting to blocking the N2 freeway on multiple occasions, out of frustration.
