The Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training has called on the National Skills Fund (NSF) to stop blaming third parties and take responsibility for its own inadequate project management of its funded skills development programmes.
The committee made this remark during a briefing from the NSF on learners’ stipend payments in NSF-funded skills development projects, including the Denel Training Academy programme, and related matters.
Problems began in January 2026 when third-party service provider Phila Jordan Capital (PJC) relocated learners in an artisan training project without formally notifying the NSF, in breach of the memorandum of agreement (MOA). PJC relocated learners again in April 2026, despite the NSF having instructed it to stop relocating students without approval. These breaches disrupted the programme and compromised learners’ welfare and safety.
The training project involved approximately 800 learners and was originally allocated about R354 million. After terminating its agreement with PJC, the NSF sought to rescue the project and support learners whose training, accommodation and stipend payments had been disrupted. However, photographs began circulating on social media showing learners sleeping in a building corridor in Johannesburg after they were evicted from their accommodation by their landlords over non-payment of their rent.
The NSF then approached the Denel Training Academy to take over the project, and a new agreement was signed. However, the transition encountered further delays involving the Basic Accounting System (BAS) and supplier registration. BAS is the accounting system used by government to manage and process public funds. Learners also had to undergo physical verification and sign new contracts, while BAS and banking-verification disruptions affected the transfer of funds. Stipend payments therefore remained a major concern.
Committee members maintained that, as the funder, the NSF remained accountable for the project. They described NSF project management of the project as a complete failure and recommended closer examination of the shortcomings.
The committee Chairperson, Mr Tebogo Letsie, expressed serious concern that the NSF lacked accurate information about learner payments. He said the project manager should have known whether learners had been paid and should have maintained regular contact with them. He also questioned claims that payments had been made, as correspondence from project partner Denel Technical Academy indicated that learners were still unpaid.
“These serious contradictions suggest that the project manager is not involved in the project’s day-to-day operations,” Mr Letsie said.
The NSF reported that 757 learners had received their April stipends, while 701 had received their July stipends. May and June 2026 stipends remained unpaid because a legal opinion indicated that paying them could constitute fruitless and wasteful expenditure.
The NSF’s Acting Executive Officer, Ms Melissa Erra, said the NSF took full responsibility for the non-payment of stipends and the many issues arising from inadequate oversight of third parties contracted to assist learners. “Because these are our beneficiaries, we do need to safeguard their teaching and learning so that they're able to complete. It’s not about counting the number of students funded. It’s about ensuring that the outcome is achieved so that learners have workplace training and are certified, so they have opportunities to access gainful employment or become self-employed,” Ms Erra said.
The Minister of Higher Education, Mr Buti Manamela, acknowledged that audit findings at the NSF demonstrated unresolved weaknesses. “Our responsibility is to establish a National Skills Fund capable of exercising proper control over its resources while delivering its developmental mandate effectively,” Mr Manamela said.
Member of the committee Dr Delmaine Christians was particularly concerned that money had been paid to Denel despite no training having taken place. “We keep hearing explanations involving PJC, reconciliations with Denel, the Central Supplier Database and banking-details verification. However, the NSF is the funder and is ultimately responsible for managing and overseeing this project,” Dr Christians said.
In conclusion, Mr Letsie warned that inadequate project management and learner support were contributing to financial losses within the system. He called on the project manager to address concerns raised by committee members and put measures in place to deal with failures in communication, payment monitoring and oversight.
Jabulani Majozi
1 October 2026
Arrange a tour