The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) has joined the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) in a legal bid to cancel its costly Cape Town Foreshore lease, which costs over R2 million per month.
NSFAS filed its application to the Special Tribunal by 30 April 2025, following findings from the Auditor-General and SIU pointing to procurement irregularities and non-compliance with the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA). The lease was not disclosed to National Treasury despite rising costs.
The application will be based on public procurement law rather than contract law to avoid penalties.
NSFAS is cooperating with the SIU’s ongoing investigation under Proclamation R.88 of 2022 and has begun preparing relocation plans in case the lease is terminated.
Delays and Criticism
In 2024, NSFAS launched a review to reduce or terminate the lease, but it was delayed due to the lack of alternative office space. Minister Nobuhle Nkabana confirmed no new premises had been secured.
The move date remains unknown as no replacement offices have been found.
Meanwhile, the NSFAS decentralisation plan has also been paused due to a CCMA ruling requiring further consultation with unions.
NSFAS has faced widespread criticism over the lease’s cost and student accessibility. In 2023, UDM leader Bantu Holomisa called for a criminal probe into the nearly R20 million spent on unoccupied offices between 2021 and 2022.
