5. The following formed part of the discussion . The Central Application Office was already in operations in KwaZulu- Natal. This project was such a success that it was even adopted by FET colleges. The Committee was interested in being informed of the progress made by HESA in expanding this project to other provinces. . University relations with their nearby communities was highlighted as a key concern. Most high schools especially in townships did not have a direct relationship with HEIs and this affected learners in these schools when choosing their career path. . The notion of financial exclusion on the basis of being poor was detrimental towards the development of young black suitably qualified individuals. Financial exclusions in HEIs had always been the major concern of student leadership whom the Committee has met in its oversight visits and HESA had a critical role to ensure that HEIs abandoned this practice. . Institutional governance, particularly in HEIs, was an ongoing concern to such an extent that the Minister had already placed three HEIs under administration and two Independent Assessors were sent to other HEIs. This was an indictment on the leadership of HEIs and HESA had a very important role in ensuring that HEIs complied with the regulation of good governance. . The inadequate development of the next generation of academics was highlighted as a major concern for the HE sector. This resulted in an influx of foreign academics occupying senior positions in HEIs across the country. HESA had a critical role in ensuring that the future of the HE sector is sustainable and spearheaded by local academics. . Factors such as inequalities, poor economic background and the language barrier remained the key challenges that delayed the growth of participation of the minority in higher education. . HESA has engaged the Department on the issue of fee increment on numerous occasions. The main challenge was the declining funding allocated to HEIs by the Department. Universities spent 65% of their budget on salaries of academic staff. However, the resource base of HEIs was different. . Students with good academic records were given an opportunity to complete their studies even if they owed the university and were also allowed to graduate. However, the results of the students were withheld as an incentive for repayment. The students' employer, however, may contact the university to access the student's results upon request. . HEIs were aware of the situation of many poor black students who were in need of financial assistance. However, there was a shortfall of R80m from NSFAS for HEIs and this increased the pressure for HEIs to assist poor students. The student debt, for an example, at Durban University of Technology (DUT) was R280m and the institution could not afford to increase this debt. . Institutional governance was the responsibility of the Councils as statutory bodies of the institutions with the statutory role of monitoring the performance of the HEIs, and HESA did not monitor HEIs performance as it fell outside its mandate. . HESA was funded through a proportional income from its member body and universities had a right to withdraw their membership from HESA. . Institutional autonomy was very important for universities although they still had to be accountable. Universities had no power to influence each other as they were independent institutions. The Department had a policy monitoring role over all HEIs. However, the main challenge was the capacity in the Department to exercise this function. . The AG reached an agreement with HESA that, in future, universities would report on pre-determined objectives including human resources, supply chain management policies and compliance with the HE Act. . The increase in the number of learners passing Matric meant that FET colleges had an important role to develop these young people into active participants of the economy, hence FET college should be elevated to the same level as HEIs and not as second choice institutions. . The high unemployment rate was a broad social challenge and the role of universities was to produce qualified people ready for the market, rather than to create solutions to the challenge of unemployment. . Universities needed R150m to start the next generation of academics project. Universities would recruit 300 young black talented students and be trained and developed into future academics of the country. . It would be a challenge to source academics for the proposed universities in Northern Cape and Mpumalanga. However, there was a need to obtain appropriate candidates to lead those institutions.