The Durban University of Technology (DUT) takes note of the statement issued by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) regarding information circulating on social media that references NSFAS budget constraints and the closure of the 2025 registration portal.
DUT wishes to clarify that no official institutional communication or media statement was released by the university making claims about the financial standing of NSFAS. The information referenced in the NSFAS statement originated from direct communication sent by the Financial Aid unit to a group of 1671 affected DUT students on Monday, 05 May 2025. The intention was to provide those students with accurate and transparent information concerning the status of their May 2025 NSFAS allowance payments, as part of the university’s commitment to open, honest and responsible communication.
This internal communication was subsequently circulated on social media without authorisation or context, resulting in misinterpretation of DUT’s intentions and an apparent misunderstanding with NSFAS.
For the record, DUT had, by the official NSFAS deadline of 02 April 2025, successfully uploaded 23464 student registration templates. An additional 634 templates were uploaded on 03 April 2025, when the portal remained accessible. However, a further 1037 registration templates could not be uploaded as the system was no longer accepting submissions after that date.
It is important to note that during the Financial Aid Practitioners of South Africa (FAPSA) meeting with NSFAS held on Friday, 11 April 2025, it was stated that the closure of the system was linked to budget-related constraints. This was corroborated by NSFAS Senior Manager for University Support, Mr Thilivhali Mukondeleli, in his communication to institutions on Wednesday, 02 April 2025.
In good faith and as requested, DUT submitted a formal memorandum to NSFAS on 25 April 2025 outlining the reasons for the registration delays affecting 1671 students. These included:
1. Late NSFAS appeal outcomes.
2. Delays in lease confirmations from a NSFAS-accredited private accommodation provider.
3. Delayed funding application finalisations by NSFAS.
4. NSFAS-flagged duplicate registrations across institutions.
Regrettably, DUT has not received any response or acknowledgment from NSFAS, following this submission.
NSFAS had indicated that allowance payments would be disbursed by Friday, 02 May 2025 but on Wednesday, 30 April 2025, DUT received a notice from NSFAS indicating that there would be a delay in processing the funds. Furthermore, NSFAS requested that DUT pays the allowances to the qualifying students from the university’s budget and that this amount, would be reimbursed. That request required internal approvals for delegation of authority in line with DUT’s financial and accounting principles.
After receiving the required internal approval, an amount in excess of R44 million was disbursed from the university’s budget, to qualifying students on Tuesday, 06 May 2025, ensuring that qualifying students could receive their allowances within the acceptable time-frame of the 7th day of each month. Later that evening on Tuesday, 06 May 2025, NSFAS reimbursed the university.
DUT respects the role of NSFAS as a critical partner in supporting students in higher education and remains committed to constructive engagement to resolve any outstanding matters. The university is, however, disappointed that NSFAS issued a public statement referencing DUT without first engaging directly with the university to seek clarification.
We confirm that DUT is actively seeking to address this misunderstanding through appropriate channels and remains fully committed to the shared goal of ensuring that qualifying students receive the financial support they are entitled to.
Pictured: DUT Ritson campus in Durban.
Durban University of Technology
