South African universities hail action after unrest over grants

Termination of direct payment provider contracts that sparked student backlash “only prudent”, Usaf says

Universities South Africa has welcomed the decision to terminate the contracts of four service providers appointed to pay out grants to needy students, after problems with payments sparked violent unrest earlier this year.

Usaf chief executive officer Phethiwe Matutu said it was “only prudent” to terminate the contracts after an independent investigation, published last week, found irregularities around their appointment.