Stellenbosch University (SU) is currently in contact with the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) and NSFAS’s new service provider to address challenges students are facing around funding through this scheme, said Martin Viljoen, media manager for Stellenbosch University.
This comes as students at SU who receive funding from NSFAS continue to struggle to register to their new service provider, Coinvest, and have raised concerns over receiving funding. This is according to William Sezoe, vice chairperson of the Student Representative Council (SRC) at SU.
“We have had Coinvest and NSFAS representatives on campus [for two weeks at the beginning of August] and we will arrange with them again to assist any students who were not assisted,” Viljoen told SMF News.
In June, NSFAS announced the introduction of the banking app, Coinvest as their new service provider for SU and other South African universities, said Sezoe.
The Coinvest banking app provides a money management system that allows mobile money transactions and payments, according to the Coinvest Africa website.
“Once students are registered with Coinvest, the student can access their NSFAS funds,” he said.
Previously, NSFAS would pay the allowances of registered students directly to the university, who would then transfer the allowance into the relevant student’s bank account, explained Sezoe.
Now, NSFAS allowances will be accessed through the Coinvest banking system, he said.
At the end of July, the Admin A building at Stellenbosch University (SU) offered administration services for students to voice their concerns over Coinvest, said William Sezoe, vice chairperson of the Student Representative Council (SRC) at SU. Coinvest provides a banking app where registered National Student Financial Aids Scheme (NSFAS) students can access their funds, according to the Coinvest Africa website. PHOTO: Liam Voorma
Registration issues
Coinvest did not give the SRC a deadline for students to register, said Sezoe. According to Sezoe, they did, however, state that if a NSFAS student does not register, such a student would not be able to access their funding.
Some SU students are struggling to have their onboarding on the Coinvest platform finalised, said Sezoe.
“NSFAS must send [the] data [of registered students] to Coinvest; only then will Coinvest be able to onboard you,” he said.
However, it appears that not all registered students’ data has been sent yet, claimed Sezoe.
In June, the National Student Financial Aids Scheme announced that Coinvest would act as a third-party service provider for Stellenbosch University and other South African universities, said William Sezoe, vice chairperson of the Student Representative Council. PHOTO: Liam Voorma
Poor communication
“Students don’t have a place that they can physically go to enquire about issues they have over Coinvest,” said Tebogo Radebe, communications officer for the SRC.
The SRC has queried the prospect of having a Coinvest staff member stationed at SU permanently to allow students to voice their concerns directly, said Sezoe.
“When we reach out [to Coinvest], we get no responses and are left in the dark,” said Tana Benn, a BA Humanities student at SU, who receives funding through NSFAS.
SMF News reached out to NSFAS and Coinvest, but at the time of publication had not received any feedback.
Masilo Silokazi, chairperson of the Stellenbosch University student representative council [pictured above] held a mass meeting on 26 July in the Neelsie for students to voice their complaints over the National Student Financial Aids Scheme and the new third-party service provider, Coinvest. PHOTO: Liam Voorma