a) The Department of Higher Education and Training appointed Nexus Forensic Services on 23 September 2015 to conduct an investigation into allegations of fraud and corruption in the allocation of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) at ten identified public universities, and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges.
(i) Terms of Reference of the investigation:
To conduct a comprehensive audit for the 2012, 2013 and 2014 academic years to determine the extent of misrepresentation and fraud committed by students who qualified and have received financial aid, including parents and guardians, employees of universities; public TVET colleges, NSFAS and individuals who have manipulated financial aid processes to defraud NSFAS.
The audit must include:
The investigation should be concluded within 12 months. The Department may decide to extend the investigation based on the extent of allegations of fraud and corruption at a particular institution.
(ii) The final report of the investigation was submitted to the Department on
15 March 2018.
b) (i)-(ii) The report is being analysed and measures based on the findings and recommendations will be considered.
c) Nexus Forensic Services (Pty) Ltd
d) R2 053 249.07
e) The investigation was undertaken in phases. Phase 1 consisted of the analysis of data and supporting documentation aimed at identifying fraud risks across the ten selected institutions. The Phase 1 report was presented to the Minister of Higher Education and Training on 10 March 2016. During Phase 1, Nexus Forensic Services (NFS) identified specific cases of students (identity numbers) and institutions who had been “red flagged” for further investigation in Phase 2.
Phase 2 of the investigation involved the original data analyses from Phase 1 being verified and/or compared with the student application information and the institutions’ final year reports. The NFS provided their report on Phase 2 to the Minister of Higher Education and Training on 14 March 2017. The Phase 2 report pointed to possible irregularities in the allocation of funds to some students.
The NFS identified different categories of potential irregularities, with a number of discrepancies within each category. They recommended that where there were a large percentage of alleged irregularities, samples of these categories should be further investigated in order to determine the veracity of the findings on the data. The Minister agreed that the investigation be extended, and that this would constitute the third and final phase of the investigation. The final report, once received, should provide details of the scale of irregularities and advice on mechanisms to ensure that these are dealt with systemically.