University calls on NSFAS to scrap cap on accommodation allowance as students battle to find lodgings

Many tertiary students in private accommodation are battling to find lodgings this year because the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has capped the private accredited accommodation annual allowance at R45,000 for 2023.

Last week, Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande said all university student allowances, except the living allowance, would increase by 5%. He said students housed at university residences would receive an annual allowance of R61,500, and those in private, accredited accommodation off campus would receive an allowance capped at R45,000.

Keneiloe Ramohapi, a second-year BSc student at the University of Pretoria (UP), says last year NSFAS gave her R60,000 for accommodation, which was already too little. She was paying R6,630 a month. She relied on her mother who runs an informal business selling honey to top up her rent.

Many UP students live in Hatfield because it is considered a safe area near the main campus. Most students GroundUp spoke to pay more than R6,000 a month in rent.

Alex Mailula, a third-year law student from Limpopo, said, “There’s no one back home who will be able to pay for me.” He said his rent had gone up from R5,900 a month last year to R6,300.