[File Photo]

The Tertiary Scholarships & Loans Service has disbursed $13 million to sponsored students through the M-PAiSA platform this year.

Chief Executive Hasmukh Lal made the announcement during the renewal of the partnership with Vodafone Fiji.

Lal says the students will benefit through this partnership and the objectives of TSLS will be solidified for another five years.

He says by the end of this year, they project that around $25 million will be disbursed through the M-PAiSA platform to the students.

He says the increase in funding is due to a rise in sponsored students this year, compared to an average of 13,000 active students in the last two years.

Lal points out that the average annual allowance payout in the initial four years was $8 million.

However, this figure has increased to $18 million as of last year.

This increase indicates a growth of 125% in the number of students who opted for M-PAiSA to receive their allowances.