The Department of Basic Education (DBE) made quite the shocking announcement last week when it announced that Matric results would not be publicly available as usual, citing the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) in a bid to keep student information private.
That decision has now been reversed, but it seems only because the DBE’s hand was forced.
“The [DBE] has noted the Pretoria High Court ruling regarding the release of the National Senior Certificate examinations results on media platforms. The Department will abide by the ruling. This means that the Department will make available the results to stakeholders who requested access. The conditions of the court ruling must be taken into account in line with the provisions of the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013,” reads a press release.
Earlier this week the DBE also opened up its website for Matric students to register. It is here that they can alternatively receive their results directly from the department.
Despite the court’s decision the DBE is still encouraging students to go the website route.
“In addition to accessing results from media platforms, the Department also urges candidates to register on the website to view the results when they become available. Candidates will have to go through a two-step verification process before receiving confirmation of their registration. A 13-digit ID number and Exam Number will be required for registration. The DBE website is zero-rated. which means it can be accessed whether you have data or not. Registration is now open! By lunch time more than 10,000 people had successfully registered,” the press release adds.
Considering that it has just been a couple of days since registrations opened that 10 000 number is rather impressive, but then again we can see students and parents flocking to the website when the decision still stood not to release results publicly.
All of these changes are cutting things rather close with the Matric 2021 results planned for a full release in just a few days. The ministerial announcement is planned to happen on 20th January and the provincial release of results on 21st January, according to Elijah Mhlanga, Chief Director of Communications and Media at the Department of Basic Education.
