MBABANE– The Ministry of Labour and Social Security has announced that government has provisionally awarded Pre-Service Tertiary loans (scholarships) to 3 600 out of about 4 100 applicants who applied for the 2021/22 academic year in local institutions.
The ministry has further reminded applicants that they will no longer sit for interviews this year.
Instead, students who have applied for scholarships and are keen to know if they have been provisionally selected for scholarships should visit their respective institutions of higher learning to access the provisional scholarship list.
Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security Thulani Mkhaliphi said they have finished the process of selecting the students according to the laid down criteria and the list has already been sent to all universities and colleges in the country.
The PS Mkhaliphi stated that the ministry is still to subject each of the High School certificates into a verification process, whether local or international.
He said another aspect of the verification will be a police clearance.
“Before registering at the institution, students are requested to email the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, indicating that they consent to the terms and conditions of the Provisional study loan award,” he said.
He continued: “The email address will be provided in each of the registration points at institutions and the student must ensure that they receive a response from the Ministry confirming verification. Without the response, it means the award is incomplete,”
Mkhaliphi further stated that the ministry will then send a loan agreement through an email address provided by the student which will prompt the student to print and fill it out and proceed to the police station to obtain the police clearance.
“Once the student has finished all that, they must submit both the agreement and the police clearance to the school and the Ministry will come and collect there. Once collected, each of the students will be informed that the loan agreement has been finalised,” he said.
“We request that students take this process very seriously and fill the forms correctly to avoid any delays. We want to introduce efficiency in the disbursement of students allowances,” he said.
