The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has urged students who have been subjected to abuse or exploitation by student accommodation landlords to report cases to the police. File Picture: Independent Newspapers Archives
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is calling on students to come forward with any information regarding exploitation or abuse by landlords, after concluding its investigation into recent allegations that landlords were demanding sexual favours in exchange for student accommodation.
Accommodation issues have plagued students over the past few months. Last week, Higher Education Minister Nobuhle Nkabane said the matter was receiving attention.
These allegations surfaced in a Sunday World article published on February 16, 2025, titled "Unscrupulous landlords demand sex from students." In response, NSFAS, in collaboration with the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) and Thekwini TVET College, launched an investigation into the claims.
However, NSFAS stated that their inquiry faced challenges.
"The Thekwini TVET College confirmed that the student mentioned in the article is not registered at the institution, making it difficult to verify the authenticity of the incident or provide direct support to the individual involved," NSFAS said.
NSFAS also said that despite urging students to report incidents to the South African Police Service (SAPS) and share case numbers with NSFAS, no formal cases have been reported to date.
"Should further credible information come forward, NSFAS will reopen the investigation to ensure appropriate action is taken," the organisation stated.
NSFAS reaffirmed its commitment to student safety and strongly condemned any form of exploitation, harassment, or gender-based violence. "Such behaviour will not be tolerated, and landlords found guilty of misconduct will face blacklisting and termination of their NSFAS accreditation," a recent statement from NSFAS read.
Speaking at the media briefing last week at UKZN Westville Campus, the NSFAS Administrator Freeman Nomvalo said: “We urge student leadership to assist the victims to be able to report, and if there is a need for the victims to be given some counselling, we can then make those interventions as well.”
Students who experience similar incidents are encouraged to report them to SAPS and obtain a case number before notifying NSFAS via speakup@nsfas.org.za for further action.
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