Africa-Press – Namibia. PARLIAMENTARIANS and student lobby groups are calling for a complete overhaul of the Namibia Students Financial Assistance Fund (NSFAF) funding policy to cater for deserving Namibian students.
PARLIAMENTARIANS and student lobby groups are calling for a complete overhaul of the Namibia Students Financial Assistance Fund (NSFAF) funding policy to cater for deserving Namibian students.
Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) parliamentarian Inna Hengari says reviewing the fund’s policy would ensure all students, regardless of the institution of higher learning they are enrolled at, are treated equally and funded equitably.
“I understand members want this fund to be established by the Ministry of Finance, and in doing so they concede to the truth that the NSFAF is completely useless and incapable of managing, much less of reporting on a single cent,”she says.
“From the acting chief executive officer (CEO) to all those who have run down the institution, they have turned it into a cash cow with no sense of guilt, and no sense of responsibility whatsoever,” she says.
Hengari says there is no need to establish new pockets for the NSFAF to manage, since they would be unable to.
Swapo member of parliament Kletus Karondo says many university administrators and academic counsellors can confirm they come across young people on a regular basis who complain of not being able to afford to register or buy textbooks.
“These students do not have the financial means to pay for decent accommodation, tuition fees or food on a regular basis.
“I am of the opinion that student financial assistance should be awarded to the neediest students on time, because without this financial help they may never have a chance to attend university or other institutions of higher learning,” he says.
Namibia National Students Organisation (Nanso) spokesperson Dorethea Nangolo says they have been at the forefront of fighting for the NSFAF’s funding policy to be reviewed.
“NSFAF’s policy should be reviewed in a manner that responds to and accommodates all students. The issue is beyond registration fees.
“The NSFAF has a funding criteria of certain priority courses. If underprivileged students are not studying any of the priority courses, they cannot fund you,” she says.
Nangolo says prospective students have to pay N$2 500 to register if they have been issued a provisional letter, but this does not guarantee them a loan.
“So many students come to us at the beginning of the year, crying that they might not study further because they cannot afford registration fees.
“It’s disheartening. The NSFAF should review all its funding processes to accommodate the needy,” she says.
She says the NSFAF should release its provisional acceptance list as soon as possible, before December, so that accepted students can avoid paying their registration fees in January.
Meanwhile, NSFAF acting CEO Kennedy Kandume has defended the fund’s policy, saying currently all beneficiaries are exempted from paying registration fees.
He says it is not fair to say the NSFAF is not assisting underprivileged students, since this is the fund’s primary focus.
“Continuing students register without paying, and the new intakes who have not yet been funded by the NSFAF are strictly speaking not beneficiaries.
“They are just students who have applied while we are assessing whether they qualify or not.
“We then allow them to register, and the university reduces their registration fees to accommodate them,” he says.
Kandume says if a Namibian child shows up at a university and the university asks for registration fees, it is not “an NSFAF problem”.
He says universities should also reconsider their registration fees.
“We want to start the application as soon as possible and give provisional award letters before students register,” he says.
Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) parliamentarian Inna Hengari says reviewing the fund’s policy would ensure all students, regardless of the institution of higher learning they are enrolled at, are treated equally and funded equitably.
“I understand members want this fund to be established by the Ministry of Finance, and in doing so they concede to the truth that the NSFAF is completely useless and incapable of managing, much less of reporting on a single cent,”she says.
“From the acting chief executive officer (CEO) to all those who have run down the institution, they have turned it into a cash cow with no sense of guilt, and no sense of responsibility whatsoever,” she says.
Hengari says there is no need to establish new pockets for the NSFAF to manage, since they would be unable to.
Swapo member of parliament Kletus Karondo says many university administrators and academic counsellors can confirm they come across young people on a regular basis who complain of not being able to afford to register or buy textbooks.
“These students do not have the financial means to pay for decent accommodation, tuition fees or food on a regular basis.
“I am of the opinion that student financial assistance should be awarded to the neediest students on time, because without this financial help they may never have a chance to attend university or other institutions of higher learning,” he says.
Namibia National Students Organisation (Nanso) spokesperson Dorethea Nangolo says they have been at the forefront of fighting for the NSFAF’s funding policy to be reviewed.
“NSFAF’s policy should be reviewed in a manner that responds to and accommodates all students. The issue is beyond registration fees.
“The NSFAF has a funding criteria of certain priority courses. If underprivileged students are not studying any of the priority courses, they cannot fund you,” she says.
Nangolo says prospective students have to pay N$2 500 to register if they have been issued a provisional letter, but this does not guarantee them a loan.
“So many students come to us at the beginning of the year, crying that they might not study further because they cannot afford registration fees.
“It’s disheartening. The NSFAF should review all its funding processes to accommodate the needy,” she says.
She says the NSFAF should release its provisional acceptance list as soon as possible, before December, so that accepted students can avoid paying their registration fees in January.
Meanwhile, NSFAF acting CEO Kennedy Kandume has defended the fund’s policy, saying currently all beneficiaries are exempted from paying registration fees.
He says it is not fair to say the NSFAF is not assisting underprivileged students, since this is the fund’s primary focus.
“Continuing students register without paying, and the new intakes who have not yet been funded by the NSFAF are strictly speaking not beneficiaries.
“They are just students who have applied while we are assessing whether they qualify or not.
“We then allow them to register, and the university reduces their registration fees to accommodate them,” he says.
Kandume says if a Namibian child shows up at a university and the university asks for registration fees, it is not “an NSFAF problem”.
He says universities should also reconsider their registration fees.
“We want to start the application as soon as possible and give provisional award letters before students register,” he says.
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