Students decry delayed disbursement

Government sponsored students at Kigali Institute of Education and Kigali institute of Science and Technology have decried the sluggish way in which their allowances are disbursed by Students Financing Agency (SFAR).

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Government sponsored students at Kigali Institute of Education and Kigali institute of Science and Technology have decried the sluggish way in which their allowances are disbursed by Students Financing Agency (SFAR).

According to students, the disbursement process takes long, and according to some students, they are still owed a one month’s allowance from last year.

The grieved students complained to The New Times that their counterparts from other institutions of higher learning get their allowances on time.

"We want to know whether there is a particular reason why SFAR delays our facilitation” one of the students said.

According to the agency, each government sponsored student is entitled to Rwf 25,000 per month to supplement their incomes on accommodation, feeding and other expenses.

When contacted for comment, SFAR’s Director of Disbursement and Loan recovery, Desire Gacinya, said that the agency always disburses students depending on an institution’s academic year program.

"Generally SFAR disburse the complete academic year’s funds for each student”.

According to Gacinya SFAR’s academic year is ten months.
He highlighted, that during the period of paying back, the students will only pay back what they were given.

Gacinya advidsed the institutions to inform the students when the payments are made. 

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