Walter Sisulu University and the Professional Provident Society (PPS) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding which will see the two institutions collaborate in a multitude of developmental initiatives.
WSU Vice-Chancellor, Professor Rushiella Nolundi Songca, representatives from PPS, and other university delegates, sealed the deal at an MoU and Bursary handover meeting held at the Mthatha Campus in June.
PPS is a mutual financial services company that caters exclusively to graduate professionals, providing tailor-made insurance, investment, and healthcare solutions to its members.
For the past two decades, PPS has provided millions of Rands worth of bursaries to WSU Medicine students, a collaboration whose success has culminated in PPS wanting to strengthen their relationship with the university.
“This MoU means that PPS’s investment in the university has been worthwhile. Because when you look at when they started giving bursaries to our students, the number of students per year, as well as the total amount for each of those years, you can see that it has really been a substantial and fruitful investment,” said Mzolisi Payi, Director for Community Engagement and Internationalisation Directorate.
As WSU caters to many of the disenfranchised communities of the Eastern Cape, Songca commended PPS for their continued support.
“As WSU within our context and our newly restricted resources we really appreciate initiatives of this nature. I read that in the 2021 academic year, 21 students were assisted via this programme and that is a high number. Most students come from very difficult socio-economic backgrounds. Some of them are first generation graduates and therefore their parents look up to them as a way of getting out of their financial hardships. Add that to the fact that they do not have the funding to go through this programme or programmes that PPS is funding, it really is therefore important to us,” said Songca.
As a funder, PPS gives a holistic support to its beneficiaries through multiple flagship programmes including bursaries, the university support programme, work readiness programme, and professionals connection programme.
“As much as we know that tuition is a big factor, we also give out laptops, meal cards, and accommodation, as well as mental health resources to our staff and bursary holders. We are very aware that you don’t just pay tuition, there is a whole lot that comes with being a university student,” said Masenyane Molefe, Executive Trustee of the PPS Foundation.
By Yanga Ziwele
