OUTA exposes NFSAS – Wayne Duvenage unpacks the scandal here.

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) called for the resignation of Dr Blade Nzimande, Minister of Higher Education and Training, and Ernest Khosa, chairperson of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) board.

In support of this call, OUTA released voice recordings of two meetings between Khosa and a representative of a service provider which reveal how service providers allegedly paid millions of rand in kickbacks to Nzimande and Khosa, as well as at least R1 million to the South African Communist Party (SACP). This was done in return for tenders and protection for service providers.

The recordings and OUTA’s accompanying report are the latest bombshell exposing corruption and mismanagement at NSFAS. The scheme admitted earlier this week that at least 20 000 students countrywide are still waiting for 2023 allowances to be paid. The payment system to students all but collapsed after four new service providers were awarded the tender for facilitating direct payments to students since July 2023. They are: Coinvest Africa (Pty) Ltd, Tenet Technology (Pty) Ltd, Ezaga Holdings (Pty) Ltd and Norraco Corporation (Pty) Ltd.

Read OUTA’s full analysis here.

In the interview below CEO Wayne Duvenage unpacks the NSFAS scandal in depth.