The Mayor of eThekwini Municipality, Cllr James Nxumalo has called on business leaders to pledge their support towards the Tertiary Student Relief Trust Fund. He said this during the launch of the fund which was held at Royal Hotel today, 26 June 2015.
The Mayor revealed that R2.3m has been set aside for the 2016 student registrations and that 380 disadvantaged students have benefitted thus far.
The Mayor said: “The Fund will assist students coming from impoverished families in the Municipal area, and who cannot afford basic registration fees or has outstanding academic tuition fees due to their backgrounds. This is the best investment the Municipality can make to assist in changing the lives of youth and pulling them out of the cycle of poverty.”
This initiative is aligned to the eThekwini Long Term Development Framework and Human Resource Development Framework which seeks to ensure that the City meaningfully invests in developing our people.
“This is one of the initiatives that will contribute to the education and skills development of our youth who will ultimately contribute to the wellbeing of our economy,” said Nxumalo.
The Fund was launched under the theme: “Changing People’s Lives Through Radical Economic Transformation and Accelerated Service Delivery.”
One of the beneficiaries, Mndeni Gumede from Inanda Township said: “The fund has helped him to enroll for a national diploma in Public Management from Durban University of Technology.”
The Chief Executive Officer of MMK Engineering, Julius Mkhize who also pledged his contribution to the fund said he was assisted by the Municipality to enroll for BSC Civil Engineering.
“Passion and dedication is what drove me to be where I am now today. The background is nothing if you know what you want to be, education is a key. Before I pursued civil engineering, I was a taxi conductor from Isipingo to Mkhomazi,” said Mkhize.
In order for students to be considered they need to meet the following criteria:
- Proof of acceptance and/or registration with any public further education institution must be produced.
- Proof from relevant further education institution confirming that the student has not been allocated any financial support by any other sources.
- Individuals who are not working or in receipt of any income
- Students must provide necessary documentation justifying their need, including proof of all income sources of their parents or guardians which will be accompanied by a certified affidavit from the commissioner of oaths
- Provide receipt of applications with supporting documents and a further verification will be undertaken
- Academic potential/performance as proven by the latest academic reports is taken into consideration
- Students must be permanent citizens of eThekwini Municipality and provide proof of whether parents are deceased or are pensioners.
Advertisements for applications are published in the Metro Ezasegagasini during September or October.
Organisations that are willing to pledge their support of the Mayoral Student Relief Fund should use the following banking details:
Name of the account: Tertiary Students Relief Fund
Type of account: Business Current Account
Account number: 050 682 830
Branch code: 0400260
Ref. No.: 100062071
