In 2010, the Public Service Commission managed to recover $3.079 million in loan arrears from students who were sponsored under the PSC Cost-sharing program, the Student Loan Scheme and the scholarship program.
This figure surpasses the 2010 targeted figure of $2.5 million.
Mr Parmesh Chand, Permanent Secretary for Public Service stated that this excellent result was achieved through the commitment and hard work of staff at the PSC Scholarship Unit.
The implementation of enabling policies and procedures also assisted greatly.
Furthermore, the approval by the Ministry of Finance to allow deposits to be made by borrowers at the Bank of the South Pacific branches throughout Fiji provided a much-needed service, which could be accessible to a large number of debtors around the country.
Mr Chand emphasised that it is important to recover as much money as possible, as it allows Government to provide ongoing assistance to needy students.
He added that the sustainability of the Student Loan Scheme is dependent on the rate of recovery of arrears.
He encouraged those students who have borrowed funds from Government and have completed their studies to keep in constant contact with the Public Service Commission so that arrangements for repayment can be facilitated.
The arrears for years 2001 – 2010 is approximately $18 million.
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