Botswana Savings Bank appointed to disburse government student allowances

The Ministry of Finance has appointed Botswana Savings Bank (BSB) to provide banking services for the disbursement of student allowances to government-sponsored tertiary students, marking a significant shift in how the Department of Tertiary Education Financing (DTEF) manages these payments.

The three-year contract ends a long-standing arrangement with First National Bank Botswana (FNBB), which has processed allowances for DTEF beneficiaries since 2005 — a relationship spanning more than two decades.

The change follows the expiry of FNBB’s previous contract. In 2015, after a public expression of interest, FNBB was re-awarded the tender by the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Board (PPADB). The decision was based on competitive pricing and student-friendly benefits, including a subsidised monthly account maintenance fee of P6.00 (against the standard public rate of P11.00), access to the eBucks rewards programme, up to 15% cashback on prepaid airtime and electricity via FNBB platforms, and exclusive discounts at selected merchants for DTEF-sponsored students.

However, the FNBB-DTEF partnership has not been without controversy. In 2018, reports emerged that student allowance disbursement accounts had not been properly reconciled for over a decade, with nearly P1.6 billion reportedly unaccounted for. This raised serious questions about transparency in spending by the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Research, Science, and Technology.

BSB assumes responsibility for the accounts amid its own internal changes. The bank recently announced the resignation of CEO Nixon Marumoloa, who stepped down with immediate effect following his suspension in November 2025. Dr. Wabo Moswate is serving as Acting CEO in the interim.

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The transition also occurs as BSB continues efforts to evolve its operations. Despite receiving a P105 million loan in 2015 to support the acquisition of a commercial banking licence, the bank has neither obtained the licence nor formally applied for one. In the bank’s latest annual report, former CEO Marumoloa described the timeline for the licence application and BSB’s eventual transition to a full commercial bank as still “unknown.”

Student allowances remain a critical component of Botswana’s tertiary education sponsorship programme, providing monthly stipends to help cover living expenses for government-sponsored students. The Ministry of Higher Education has previously indicated plans to review and potentially increase these allowances in the coming financial year.

The appointment of BSB is expected to streamline services for thousands of students across Botswana’s tertiary institutions, though stakeholders will be watching closely how the new provider manages reconciliation, transparency, and service delivery compared to the previous arrangement.