The future of student funding in Africa
The Association of African Higher Education Financing Agencies (AAHEFA) Annual General Meeting and third International Conference on Financing Higher Education in Africa opened with a question: What is our ‘why’? Victor Kgomoeswana asked the event facilitator and the executive director for marketing and communication at the University of Limpopo. “The minute we forget our ‘why’, we lose our purpose and our drive to bring about change. If this happens we won’t be able to play a part in helping Africa secure a place on the global economic stage.”
The event was held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) recently with the theme “The Future of Student Funding and the Sustainability of African Higher Education Financing Agencies: What are the opportunities post Covid-19 Pandemic?”
“In the past,” said Charles Ringera, president of AAHEFA and chief executive of Kenya’s Higher Education Loans Boards (HELB), “we have seen loan schemes being launched and soon collapsing. Many of these organisations weren’t set up properly because they had inadequate funds, weren’t able to recover loans, there was a lack of policy support from the government or because there wasn’t a common platform that they could join to learn, improve and share their experiences. In other sectors, professionals like accountants come together to set up associations to grow their network and expand their knowledge,” said Ringera.
Speaking during the opening, Andile Nongogo, chief executive of South Africa’s National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS), highlighted various problems with higher education funding, noting that all of these come down to affordability and sustainability.
“Our higher education funding schemes all exist in the context of shrinking funding from the fiscus and increased demand in terms of the number of people who want to access higher education but cannot afford to do so.”
He added that Covid-19 has made the situation worse. With the pandemic increasing unemployment rates, many of the people who lost their jobs are looking to higher education to help them secure employment. A conference like this provides a platform for different countries to come together to brainstorm sustainable solutions to common problems.
“African problems require African solutions,” he said, noting that this is why an association like AAHEFA is vital.
A common issue that came up at the event was around funding criteria. In order to qualify for many of the funding schemes and financial assistance funds, a student needs to prove that their family’s income is below a certain threshold.
“But what if the threshold is R350 000 per year and someone earns R350 001, should they be excluded?” asked NSFAS chairperson, Ernest Khosa.
This issue has also been flagged by South Africa’s minister of higher education, science and innovation, Dr Blade Nzimande, who noted at the end of 2021 that the government was working towards providing support to higher education students who find themselves in this “missing middle” income bracket. Another debate unpacked whether or not funding for certain degrees — particularly those that address critical skills shortages faced by a country — should be favoured over others.
While a common sentiment throughout the event was that higher education financing is under threat, Ringera and others stressed that Africa is an incredibly resourceful continent, full of potential and capable of coming up with ways to do things differently.
Given the fact that Africa has the youngest and fastest-growing population in the world, this presents an opportunity and a challenge. The challenge is to ensure that funding models are geared to enable young people to acquire the skills they need to thrive and to provide the market with
what it needs. The opportunity is for universities to shape these young people into the bright minds needed to transform the global economy. But just securing more government funding isn’t enough.
To capitalise on this opportunity, attendees agreed that it is essential to diversify sources of financing, revisit funding criteria, explore alternative types of learning and come up with strategies to ensure that loans are repaid.
In line with this, data and new technologies were cited as enablers to up efficiency and ensure the successful running of these funds.
“If we want to be a part of the global village, we need to use these innovations to better do the work we do,” said Ringera. “We witnessed the potential of connectivity and digital tools and technologies during the pandemic, when we saw that the future of education does not lie in the classroom. More and more, studies can happen anywhere, virtually,” he explained, highlighting the value of digital access to enable customised learning and funding.
Given the general lack of funds, TVET programmes were touted as a viable alternative to traditional university degrees as they equip young people to get jobs, faster. A TVET qualification is usually shorter and cheaper to obtain, so students are getting into the workforce a lot faster. Where university programmes are geared towards the transfer of knowledge, TVET colleges focus on teaching valuable skills.
By matching training and education with market requirements, Basani Hlekane, acting chief executive at Vhembe TVET College, outlined that TVET colleges can offer programmes that address the needs of industries and communities. For example, Vhembe partners with corporates to offer training geared specifically at upskilling their employees.
But it isn’t only about funding. It is essential that African financing agencies go beyond money, attendees at the event heard. Financing without proper student support is a recipe for disaster, advised Professor Ramneek Ahluwalia, chief executive of Higher Health, a South African agency that promotes the health and well-being of students across South Africa’s universities and TVET colleges.
“If we want to ensure the sustainability of the industry, we can’t have funding conversations without having conversations about mental health and wellbeing,” Ahluwalia said.
“These funds are mandated by governments to build the skills economy for our country and for the continent. They are given a sum of money to fight poverty by changing the lives of the most underprivileged individuals.
“But if we hand out money without addressing broader mental health and social challenges, we’re not going to get the return on investment we want.
“If we aren’t helping our young people to handle all of the anxiety and stress they have to deal with on a daily basis, how can we expect them to pass their exams,” asked Ahluwalia.
South African research shows that only 50% of students pass, he said, noting that only 25% of this half finish their degree in time and the other 75% take as long as 10 years to complete their studies.
“Yes, money is a solution to the skills crisis but if we neglect the other issues that are present in our society, we are fighting a losing battle.”
Kgomoeswana summed up the importance of the event and the conversations being had when he unpacked gross enrolment rate figures from across the globe. These numbers represent the total enrollment in higher education expressed as a percentage of the population in the official age group corresponding to this level of education. In sub-saharan Africa, this number is well below 10%. In America these numbers are close to 90%.
If the vast majority of young people in subsaharan Africa aren’t able to access tertiary education, it’s inevitable that Africa will fall behind.
“At the start of this, when I said, let’s remember our ‘why’ I meant that we need to remember what is at stake if we don’t address the issue of funding. If we don’t get it right, we are not only risking the faltering of higher education systems, we run the risk of broader socio-political and socio-economic instability.”