After protests over upfront fees at Rhodes University, a Unisa business school expert says the fix is not always more money, but a better-run funding system that pays universities directly.

Student funding may not be failing because of a lack of money, but because of how that money is managed.

Dr Simphiwe Madikizela, a senior lecturer at Unisa's Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL), says "poor planning, weak and inefficient systems and processes" at institutions responsible for funding students mean money does not always reach those who qualify.

His warning comes after protests at Rhodes University in Makhanda last week over a proposed fee payment protocol, which resulted in 13 students being arrested and later released.

Under the proposed policy, students must clear 50% of outstanding debt and tuition fees by the end of 2026 to register for the 2027 academic year.

Read more Rubber bullets fired at Rhodes graduation ceremony October 2, 2026 Rhodes University spokesperson Olwetu Gwanya said, "The proposed 2027 protocol on the payment of student fees is a response to the unsustainably growing levels of student debt and the need to ensure the university's long-term financial sustainability while maintaining access to higher education."

For undergraduates with outstanding debt, the proposal is a 50% upfront payment towards that debt, with the balance paid under set arrangements. Rhodes says the plan also stretches the...