Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela outlined key challenges faced during his first year in office, emphasizing governance crises across institutions and instability at the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).He highlighted the need to stabilize NSFAS, which saw leadership resignations within two months of his appointment.Manamela noted that governance issues often dominate public discourse despite most institutions functioning effectively.He revealed the department had to allocate an additional R13.5bn to sustain NSFAS, as demand for funding outpaces budget allocations.

Looking ahead, Manamela stressed improving graduate employability through work-integrated learning and transforming TVET colleges to align with industry needs.

He also called for changing public perceptions of TVET colleges to address South Africa’s skills shortage, citing underfunding as a key barrier to reaching the National Development Plan’s target of 2.5-million students in these institutions.