PAIA & POPIA

Access to Information & Protection of Personal Information

The Eastern Cape Department of Education's published manuals, notices, forms, and Information Officer designations under the Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 and the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013.

About this page

This page is the Department's single point of access for its statutory disclosures under the South African access-to-information and privacy regime. It is published in compliance with the following primary legislation:

The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 — section 32 (right of access to information).
Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 (Act No. 2 of 2000) — "PAIA".
Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (Act No. 4 of 2013) — "POPIA".

All documents below are the official, signed versions issued by the Head of Department in her capacity as the designated Information Officer.

1. PAIA — Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000

Act No. 2 of 2000 · gives effect to section 32 of the Constitution.

PAIA gives effect to the constitutional right of every person to access any information held by the State, and to any information held by another person where that information is required for the exercise or protection of any right. The Act sets out the procedure for requesting access to a record, the limited grounds on which access may be refused, the prescribed forms and fees, and the avenues for internal appeal and external review by the Information Regulator and the courts.

Who may request access

Any person — South African citizen, permanent resident, or foreign national.
Requesters acting on behalf of another person must demonstrate authority to do so.
No reason is required when requesting a record held by the State.

Statutory timelines

The Information Officer must respond within 30 days of receiving the request.
That period may be extended once by a further 30 days where the request is voluminous or requires consultation that cannot reasonably be completed in the original period.
An internal appeal must be lodged within 60 days of being notified of the decision.

Fees

A request fee and an access fee, calculated according to the prescribed schedule, may be payable. The current fee schedule appears in the Department's Section 14 Manual below and in the regulations published under PAIA.

2. Section 14 Manual

PAIA, section 14 · most recent revision signed by the Head of Department, 25 June 2026.

Section 14 of PAIA requires every public body to publish a manual setting out its structure, functions, contact details, the categories of records it holds, the procedure for requesting access to a record, the prescribed fee schedule, and the available remedies. The Department's manual is the authoritative reference for any access request and is published below in three official languages of the Eastern Cape.

Note on languages. The English version is the binding original. The Afrikaans and isiXhosa versions are provided for accessibility under section 6 of the Constitution and the Department's language policy. In the event of any discrepancy between language versions, the English version prevails.

3. Section 15 Notice — Records Automatically Available

PAIA, section 15(1) · signed by the Head of Department, 25 June 2026.

Section 15(1) of PAIA requires every public body to publish a description of the categories of records that are automatically available — that is, records that may be accessed without a formal PAIA request. The Department's current notice lists the following categories, all of which are published openly on this website:

News: Newsletters and publications, posters and banners, booklets and pamphlets, official events and activities.
General information: Profile of the MEC, profile of the Head of Department, and the Department's mandate.
Media: Media statements and photographs.
Careers: Internships, training opportunities, and current vacancies.
Legislation and regulations: The Constitution, the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA), and other legislation specific to the Department.

Where assistance is required to locate any of the above on the website, the Department's PAIA Officer may be contacted at Sharon.maasdorp@ecdoe.gov.za.

4. Information Regulator's Guides on PAIA

PAIA, section 10 · published by the Information Regulator of South Africa.

Section 10 of PAIA requires the Information Regulator to compile and publish, in each official language, a Guide containing such information as may reasonably be required by a person who wishes to exercise any right contemplated in the Act. The Department publishes the Regulator's current Guides below for the convenience of requesters.

These Guides are issued and updated by the Information Regulator of South Africa and are reproduced here unaltered. The current versions are also available directly from the Regulator at inforegulator.org.za.

5. PAIA Request Forms

PAIA Regulations · prescribed forms for access requests and internal appeals.

A formal PAIA request must be lodged on the prescribed form, accompanied by the prescribed fee where applicable. The Department's accepted forms are listed below.

Form 2 — Request for access to a record of a public body (in terms of section 18(1) of PAIA).
Form 4 — Internal appeal against a decision of the Information Officer (in terms of section 75 of PAIA).

6. PAIA Annual Reports

PAIA, section 32 · annual report to the Information Regulator.

Section 32 of PAIA requires the Information Officer of a public body to submit, within three months after the end of each financial year, a report to the Information Regulator on the requests received, granted, refused, and outstanding during that year. The Department's past annual submissions are published below for public review.

7. POPIA — Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013

Act No. 4 of 2013 · in force from 1 July 2021.

POPIA regulates the manner in which personal information must be processed by both public and private bodies in South Africa. The Act sets out eight conditions for lawful processing — accountability, processing limitation, purpose specification, further processing limitation, information quality, openness, security safeguards, and data subject participation — and establishes enforceable rights for every data subject in respect of his or her personal information.

Your rights under POPIA

To be notified that personal information about you is being collected.
To establish whether the Department holds personal information about you, and to access that information.
To request the correction, destruction, or deletion of personal information that is inaccurate, irrelevant, excessive, out of date, incomplete, misleading, or unlawfully obtained.
To object, on reasonable grounds, to the processing of your personal information.
To object to the processing of your personal information for purposes of direct marketing.
To lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator.
To institute civil proceedings regarding any alleged interference with the protection of your personal information.

Mandatory notification of security compromises

Where there are reasonable grounds to believe that the personal information of a data subject has been accessed or acquired by any unauthorised person, the Department must notify the Information Regulator and the affected data subject as soon as reasonably possible, as required by section 22 of POPIA.

8. POPIA Privacy Notice

POPIA, sections 17 and 18 · signed by the Head of Department, 25 June 2026.

The Department's current Privacy Notice explains, in plain language, what personal information is collected, the purposes for which it is collected and used, with whom it may be shared, the rights of every data subject, and how to contact the Department with a complaint or query. Members of the public, employees, suppliers and service providers, and applicants for scholarships, bursaries, or programmes are all addressed.

A paper copy of the Privacy Notice is also available at the Head Office Reception Area, Steve Vukile Tshwete Education Complex, Zone 6, Zwelitsha. POPIA queries and complaints may be directed to the Department's POPIA Officer at Malibongwe.mtima@ecdoe.gov.za.

9. Section 18 Notice — Website Cookie Policy

POPIA, section 18 · notification of collection of personal information through this website.

Section 18 of POPIA requires that a data subject be notified, before personal information is collected, of the information being collected, the source, the purpose, and related particulars. The Department's current Section 18 Notice covers the use of cookies on this website — what cookies are, why they are used, the categories used (functional, analytical, promotional, preference), and how visitors may manage their cookie preferences.

10. POPIA Forms

POPIA Regulations · prescribed forms for data-subject requests.

Data-subject requests in terms of POPIA — for access to personal information held by the Department, for correction or deletion of personal information, or to object to processing — are lodged on the prescribed forms. These will be published below as they are gazetted.

11. POPIA Compliance Reports

POPIA, section 22 and Information Regulator's reporting requirements.

Any security-compromise notifications, compliance assessments, or reports submitted by the Department to the Information Regulator in terms of POPIA are published below.

12. Information Officer

PAIA, section 17 · POPIA, section 56 · designation of the Information Officer.

In terms of both section 17 of PAIA and section 56 of POPIA, the Head of Department of the Eastern Cape Department of Education is the designated Information Officer of the Department. The Information Officer has delegated specific operational functions in respect of PAIA and POPIA matters to nominated officials in the Department.

Information Officer (PAIA & POPIA)

Ms S. Maasdorp — Head of Department

Eastern Cape Department of Education

Private Bag X0032, Bhisho, 5605

Steve Vukile Tshwete Education Complex, Zone 6, Zwelitsha

040 608 4200

PAIA Officer (Day-to-day requests under PAIA)

Sharon Maasdorp

Email: Sharon.maasdorp@ecdoe.gov.za

For assistance in locating records, lodging a Form 2 request, or following up on the status of a PAIA matter.

POPIA Officer (Day-to-day matters under POPIA)

Malibongwe Mtima

Email: Malibongwe.mtima@ecdoe.gov.za

For privacy queries, data-subject requests, and complaints relating to the processing of personal information.

External recourse — Information Regulator (South Africa). Where a data subject or requester is dissatisfied with the Department's handling of a PAIA or POPIA matter, a complaint may be lodged with the Information Regulator at enquiries@inforegulator.org.za, or at inforegulator.org.za.

13. How to lodge a request

Practical steps for submitting a PAIA access request, a POPIA data-subject request, or an internal appeal.

Identify the correct form. For a PAIA request, use Form 2. For a PAIA internal appeal, use Form 4. For a POPIA data-subject request, use the relevant prescribed form once gazetted, or write to the POPIA Officer.
Complete the form in full. The form must identify the requester, the record sought (in sufficient detail to enable identification), the form of access preferred, and a postal address or email address inside the Republic.
Pay the prescribed request fee where required. Personal requesters (a person requesting a record about themselves) are exempt from the request fee. The current fee schedule appears in the Department's Section 14 Manual above.
Submit the completed form and proof of payment (where applicable) to the Information Officer at one of the addresses set out under "Information Officer" above.
Await the Department's decision within 30 days of receipt of the request, with the possible single extension of a further 30 days where the request is voluminous or requires extensive consultation.
Internal appeal. Where access is refused in whole or in part, an internal appeal may be lodged on Form 4 within 60 days of the date on which the requester was notified of the decision.
External recourse. Where the internal appeal is unsuccessful, the requester may apply to the Information Regulator or, ultimately, to the High Court for review.

Department contact for PAIA & POPIA matters

PAIA Officer: Sharon.maasdorp@ecdoe.gov.za
POPIA Officer: Malibongwe.mtima@ecdoe.gov.za
General enquiries: 040 608 4200
Citizen Care (Toll-Free): 080 121 2570
Postal address: Private Bag X0032, Bhisho, 5605
Physical address: Steve Vukile Tshwete Education Complex, Zone 6, Zwelitsha