[Image: X/@lukewaltham]
A big move is on the horizon for students drowning in debt – EFF MP Sihle Lonzi has announced a Student Debt Relief Bill, now officially gazetted and open for public comment.
The bill aims to help thousands of students from various universities and colleges who owe outstanding fees, ensuring they can finally receive their qualifications. No more being stuck in limbo just because of debt.
Lonzi emphasized that the bill would establish a Student Debt Relief Fund, tackling the harsh reality of students whose degrees and certificates are withheld due to unpaid fees, per SowetanLive.
He referenced a report by Lea Leathern (published on UCT’s website in May 2024), which revealed that 500,000 students in South Africa are in this exact predicament. Until their debts are fully settled, they remain locked out of opportunities – no graduation, no job applications, just an uncertain future.
“Young people in South Africa are faced with two undesirable scenarios: to begin their work lives with huge sums of debt that imprison them in a permanent cycle of debt for the rest of their lives, or to remain jobless and economically inactive, as their qualifications are withheld by institutions of higher learning because of their debt. The need to address student debt is both necessary and urgent,” reads the notice gazetted on February 28.
Under the proposed law, students who meet certain criteria would be able to apply for the fund to clear their outstanding debts, allowing them to graduate and move forward with their lives.
Many students owe their universities hundreds of thousands of rands, with total student debt running into the hundreds of millions. The bill would ensure that if a student has met all academic requirements, they should receive their qualification – no ifs, ands, or buts.
For students like Bongani Khumalo, a Tshwane University of Technology graduate, this bill could be life-changing.
“I can’t access my qualification and can’t get employed to the job that I might have studied for. It also causes stress to parents because having to know that their child will graduate but not come back with that qualification, it’s another disappointment, even a stress to them because now imagine going to graduation ceremony, coming back empty-handed, imagine that pain.
“So, I think it will help a lot even with the admission of students who can’t go to tertiary institutions because of financial challenges.”
The bill isn’t just about helping past students – it could also open doors for future students struggling to access higher education due to financial barriers.
Want to have your say? The public and institutions are invited to submit written comments on the bill to the Speaker of the National Assembly within 30 days of its publication.
Now’s the time to speak up and shape the future of student debt relief in South Africa.
[Source: SowetanLive]
