A new allowance payment process for Vanuatu scholarship awardees has been officially launched this week aiming to eliminate delays in the payment of student allowances.

The new system is expected to improve efficiency and coordination between the Scholarship Unit and the Finance Unit under the Ministry of Education and Training (MoET), ensuring that students receive their allowances on time.

Director General of the Ministry of Education and Training, Cherol Ala, said the ministry will now rely on the improved digital system to manage all scholarship allowance payments.

“We will live with the system that is in place right now through the Scholarship Unit and the Finance Ministry to enhance the process of scholarship allowance payments,” she said.

Principal Education Officer for the Scholarship Unit, Joe Gideon, explained that the new system replaces the old manual and Excel-based methods with a modern, digitalized platform.

“When we used manual systems and Excel to process student allowances, it was challenging because we dealt with over 1,000 students. Errors often occurred in formulas, leading to confusion and delays in payments,” he said.

He assured scholarship awardees that with the new system, payment delays will now be a thing of the past.

“The system ensures that all information is securely stored and cannot be changed. Every transaction and data entry is recorded in the database for each awardee,” Gideon said.

The upgraded system will also help the Ministry track past and current expenditures related to scholarship allowances, enabling better budget management and transparency in fund distribution.