JOHANNESBURG – Universities South Africa is pleased with the steps taken by the Minister of Higher Education Naledi Pandor in an effort to solve the problems faced by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).

The student grant is struggling to pay students who are eligible for scholarships and has not dealt with payments that go back to last year.

Randall Carolissen was appointed as new manager last week, while uncertainty still surrounds the future of CEO Steven Zwane.

University of South Africa CEO Ahmed Bawa says he is concerned about the fact that NSFAS can not handle the influx of new applications

The Higher Education department reported last week that it strives to open applications in early September, despite the backlog of payment.

Bawa says that the financing problems must be tackled if the organization wants to go further.

"We are very concerned about the fact that the financial cycle 2017-2018 has not yet been concluded, but the proof that we have from the universities is that there are still millions of margins."

Bawa says that the appointment of Carolissen will help improve the service, given his understanding of how the universities work.

In the meantime, Nehawu is expected to meet with the Higher Education department on Tuesday to discuss the way forward.

(Edited by Leeto M Khoza)