Still too little, too late for tertiary education
GOVERNMENT spending on higher education is set to increase 7.9% over the three-year medium-term expenditure framework.
But even though an additional R16.3-billion has been allocated to the funding of needy students, industry commentators say this still falls short of what is required.
“We are just pinning our hopes on the presidential task team that [President Jacob Zuma] has assembled to look at the issue of funding free education for the poor,” said Khaye Nkwanyana, spokesman for the Department of Higher Education, after the budget speech.
Although the money allocated would “make a significant difference”, it was the task team’s recommendations that would alter the “dispensation altogether on higher education funding”, he said.
Expenditure on post-school education and training will grow from R68.7-billion in 2016-17 to R74.7-billion in 2017-18 and R80.5-billion in 2018-19.
The National Treasury’s allocation of funds, which was based on recommendations by the task team, includes R5.7-billion to make up for the shortfall resulting from the government’s decision late last year to scrap fee increases for 2016.
An amount of R2.5-billion will be transferred to the National Student Financial Aid Scheme to clear the debt accumulated by 71 753 students between 2013 and 2015.
An additional R8-billion over three years will be used to help underfunded current students to complete their studies.
Frans Cronje, CEO of the Institute of Race Relations — which estimated recently that an extra R30-billion was required for higher education — said it would remain impossible to allocate more funding to tertiary education while the economy grew at less than 1%.
The number of students enrolled in higher education institutions is projected to increase from one million in 2015-16 to 1.1 million in 2018-19, according to the Budget Review.
Nkwanyana said negotiations be- tween NSFAS and banks over a new funding model were expected to be finalised by June this year.
The new model would have to take into account the financial problems of the “missing middle” students.
These students, mostly the children of teachers, nurses and police officers, come from households with a combined income of more than R122 000 a year — above the NSFAS threshold for needy students. Yet they earn too little to qualify for bank loans.
Basic education has been allocated R218.8-billion for 2016-17, up from R204.3-billion in 2015-16.
An early childhood grant has been introduced and an additional R813million has been allocated to 4 000 early childhood development centres serving the needs of 104 000 children.
Impossible to allocate more funding while the economy grew at less than 1%