THE PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION MANUAL
1. PREAMBLE
The Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 (“PAIA“) came into operation on 9 March 2001. PAIA seeks, among other things, to give effect to the Constitutional right of access to any information held by the State or by any other person where such information is required for the exercise or protection of any right and gives natural and juristic persons the right of access to records held by either a private or public body, subject to certain limitations, in order to enable them to exercise or protect their rights. Where a request is made in terms of PAIA to a private body, that private body must disclose the information if the requester is able to show that the record is required for the exercise or protection of any rights and provided that no grounds of refusal contained in PAIA are applicable. PAIA sets out the requisite procedural issues attached to information requests.
Section 51 of PAIA obliges private bodies to compile a manual to enable a person to obtain access to information held by such body and stipulates the minimum requirements that the manual has to comply with.
This Manual constitutes the GROWTHCURVE HUMAN ALLIANCE (PTY) LTD trading as HUMAN ALLIANCE PAIA manual. This Manual is compiled in accordance with section 51 of PAIA as amended by the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (“POPIA“), which gives effect to everyone’s Constitutional right to privacy and largely commenced on 1 July 2020. POPIA promotes the protection of personal information processed by public and private bodies, including certain conditions so as to establish minimum requirements for the processing of personal information.
This PAIA manual also includes information on the submission of objections to the processing of personal information and requests to delete or destroy personal information or records thereof in terms of POPIA.
2. ABOUT HUMAN ALLIANCE
Human Alliance is a consultancy based in Cape Town, providing a comprehensive range of HR, labour and compliance support services to help businesses solve people challenges, meet regulatory requirements, and improve operational effectiveness.
Comprehensive HR services include HR & Labour Consulting, Payroll, Employment Equity, Skills Development, Training, Wellness, POPI Consulting, and more.
3. CONTACT DETAILS
Information Officer: Thea Marais
Telephone: 021 556 2930
Email: info@growthcurvegroup.co.za
Physical address: Unit 4, 62 Blaauwberg Road, Tableview, Cape Town, 7580
4. INFORMATION REGULATORS GUIDE
An official Guide has been compiled which contains information to assist a person wishing to exercise a right of access to information in terms of PAIA and POPIA. This Guide is made available by the Information Regulator (established in terms of POPIA). Copies of the updated Guide are available from Information Regulator in the manner prescribed. Any enquiries regarding the Guide should be directed to:
Postal Address: | 33 Hoof Street Forum III, 3rd Floor Braampark Braamfontein, Johannesburg |
Telephone Number: | +27 (0) 10 023 5241/2 |
E-mail Address: | |
Website: |
5. OBJECTIVES OF THIS MANUAL
The objectives of this Manual are:
- to provide a list of all records held by the legal entity;
- to set out the requirements with regard to who may request information in terms of PAIA as well as the grounds on which a request may be denied;
- to define the manner and form in which a request for information must be submitted; and
- to comply with the additional requirements imposed by POPIA.
6. ENTRY POINT FOR REQUESTS
PAIA provides that a person may only make a request for information if the information is required for the exercise or protection of a legitimate right.
Information will therefore not be furnished unless a person provides sufficient particulars to enable The Company to identify the right that the requester is seeking to protect as well as an explanation as to why the requested information is required for the exercise or protection of that right. The exercise of a data subject’s rights is subject to justifiable limitations, including the reasonable protection of privacy, commercial confidentiality and effective, efficient and good governance. PAIA and the request procedure contained in this Manual may not be used for access to a record for criminal or civil proceedings, nor should information be requested after the commencement of such proceedings.
The Information Officer has been delegated with the task of receiving and co-ordinating all requests for access to records in terms of PAIA, in order to ensure proper compliance with PAIA and POPIA.
The Information Officer will facilitate the liaison with the internal legal team on all of these requests.
All requests in terms of PAIA and this Manual must be addressed to the Information Officer using the details in paragraph 3 above.
7. RECORDS HELD BY The Company Personnel Information:
These records include all information of employees in order to effect contractual employment agreements and mandatory reporting to statutory bodies.
Business records of The Company
These records include:
- Financial records
- Minutes of meetings of the executive committee, departmental meetings, and staff meetings.
- Strategic plans and other operational policies
- Annual reports and other statutory reports
- Newsletters, press releases and other publications
8. AUTOMATICALLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION
Information that is obtainable via the Company’s website is automatically available and need not be formally requested in terms of this Manual.
9. INFORMATION AVAILABLE IN TERMS OF POPIA
9.1. Categories of personal information collected by the Company
The Company may collect information relating to an identifiable, living, natural person, and where it is applicable, an identifiable, existing juristic person, including, but not limited to-
- information relating to the race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, national, ethnic, or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental health, well-being, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, language, and birth of the person;
- information relating to the education or the medical, financial, criminal or employment history of the person;
- any identifying number, symbol, e-mail address, physical address, telephone number, location information, online identifier, or other particular assignment to the person;
- the name of the person if it appears with other personal information relating to the person or if the disclosure of the name itself would reveal information about the person;
9.2. The purpose of processing personal information
In terms of POPIA, personal information must be processed for a specified purpose. The purpose for which personal information is processed by the Company will depend on the nature of the personal information and the particular data subject. This purpose is ordinarily disclosed, explicitly or implicitly, at the time the personal information is collected.
In general, personal information is processed for purposes of dealing with complaints under the CPA, procurement purposes, records management, security, employment, and related matters.
9.3. A description of the categories of data subjects
The Company holds information and records on the following categories of data subjects:
- Employees / personnel of The Company;
- Any third party with whom The Company conducts business;
- Contractors of The Company;
- Suppliers of The Company.
(This list of categories of data subjects is non-exhaustive.)
9.4. The recipients or categories of recipients to whom the personal information may be supplied
Depending on the nature of the personal information, The Company may supply information or records to the following categories of recipients:
- Statutory oversight bodies, regulators or judicial commissions of enquiry making a request for personal information;
- Any court, administrative or judicial forum, arbitration, statutory commission, or ombudsman making a request for personal information or discovery in terms of the applicable rules;
- South African Revenue Services, or another similar authority;
- Anyone making a successful application for access in terms of PAIA or POPIA; and
- Subject to the provisions of POPIA and other relevant legislation, The Company may share information about a client’s creditworthiness with any credit bureau or credit providers industry association or other association for an industry in which The Company operates.
9.5. Planned transborder flows of personal information
If a data subject visits The Company’s website from a country other than South Africa, the various
communications will necessarily result in the transfer of information across international boundaries.
The Company may need to transfer a data subject’s information to service providers in countries outside South Africa, in which case it will fully comply with applicable data protection legislation.
These countries may not have data-protection laws which are similar to those of South Africa.
9.6. A general description of information security measures to be implemented by The Company
The Company takes extensive information security measures to ensure the confidentiality, integrity and availability of personal information in our possession. The Company takes appropriate technical and organisational measures designed to ensure that personal information remains confidential and secure against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage.
10. INFORMATION AVAILABLE IN TERMS OF OTHER LEGISLATION
Information is available in terms of certain provisions of the following legislation to the persons or entities specified in such legislation:
- Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997
- Labour Relations Act, No 66 of 1995
- Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Health Diseases Act 130 of 1993
- Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998
- Income Tax Act 58 of 1962
- Occupational Health & Safety Act 85 of 1993
- Skills Development Act 97 of 1998
- Skills Development Levies Act 9 of 1999
- Unemployment Contributions Act 4 of 2002
- Unemployment Insurance Act 30 of 1966
11. CATEGORIES OF RECORDS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST
The Company maintains records on the categories and subject matters listed below. Please note that recording a category or subject matter in this Manual does not imply that a request for access to such records would be granted. All requests for access will be evaluated on a case by case basis in accordance with the provisions of PAIA.
Please note further that many of the records held by The Company are those of third parties, such as clients and employees, and The Company takes the protection of third-party confidential information very seriously. For further information on the grounds of refusal of access to a record please see paragraph 14.2 below. Requests for access to these records will be considered very carefully. Please ensure that requests for such records are carefully motivated.
Category of records | Records |
Internal records The records listed pertain to The Company own affairs |
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Personnel records For the purposes of this section, “personnel” means any person who works for or provides services to or on behalf of The Company and receives or is entitled to receive any remuneration and any other person who assists in carrying out or conducting the business of The Company. This includes partners, directors, all permanent, temporary, and part-time staff as well as consultants and contract workers. |
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Client-related records |
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Other third-party records Records are kept in respect of other parties, including without limitation joint ventures and consortia to which The Company is a party, contractors and sub-contractors, suppliers, service providers, and providers of information regarding general market conditions. In addition, such other parties may possess records which can be said to belong to The Company. |
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Other records |
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12. REQUEST PROCEDURE
12.1. Completion of the Prescribed Form
Any request for access to a record from a public body in terms of PAIA must substantially correspond with the prescribed forms provided. Requests for Information can be made to: info@growthcurvegroup.co.za.
A request for access to information which does not comply with the formalities as prescribed by PAIA will be returned to you.
POPIA provides that a data subject may, upon proof of identity, request The Company to confirm, free of charge, all the information it holds about the data subject and may request access to such information, including information about the identity of third parties who have or have had access to such information.
POPIA also provides that where the data subject is required to pay a fee for services provided to him/her, The Company must provide the data subject with a written estimate of the payable amount before providing the service and may require that the data subject pays a deposit for all or part of the fee.
Grounds for refusal of the data subject’s request are set out in PAIA and are discussed below.
POPIA provides that a data subject may object, at any time, to the processing of personal information by The Company, on reasonable grounds relating to his/her particular situation, unless legislation provides for such processing. The data subject must complete the prescribed form attached hereto as Appendix C and submit it to the Information Officer at the postal or physical address, facsimile number or electronic mail address set out above.
A data subject may also request The Company to correct or delete personal information about the data subject in its possession or under its control that is inaccurate, irrelevant, excessive, out of date, incomplete, misleading, or obtained unlawfully; or destroy or delete a record of personal information about the data subject that The Company is no longer authorised to retain records in terms of POPIA’s retention and restriction of records provisions.
A data subject that wishes to request a correction or deletion of personal information or the destruction or deletion of a record of personal information must submit a request to the Information Officer at the postal or physical address, facsimile number or electronic mail address set out above on the form attached hereto as Appendix D.
12.2. Proof of identity
Proof of identity is required to authenticate your identity and the request. You will, in addition to this prescribed form, be required to submit acceptable proof of identity such as a certified copy of your identity document or other legal forms of identity.
13. PAYMENT OF THE PRESCRIBED FEES
There are two categories of fees which are payable:
- The request fee: R140.00
- The access fee: This is calculated by taking into account reproduction costs, search, and preparation costs, as well as postal costs. These fees are set out in Appendix B.
Section 54 of PAIA entitles The Company to levy a charge or to request a fee to enable it to recover the cost of processing a request and providing access to records. The fees that may be charged are set out in Regulation 9(2)(c) promulgated under PAIA.
Where a decision to grant a request has been taken, the record will not be disclosed until the necessary fees have been paid in full.
13.1. Timelines for consideration of a request for access
Requests will be processed within 30 (thirty) days, unless the request contains considerations that are of such a nature that an extension of the time limit is needed.
Should an extension be required, you will be notified, together with reasons explaining why the extension is necessary.
13.2. Grounds for refusal of access and protection of information
There are various grounds upon which a request for access to a record may be refused. These grounds include:
- the protection of personal information of a third person (who is a natural person) from unreasonable disclosure;
- the protection of commercial information of a third party (for example: trade secrets; financial, commercial, scientific, or technical information that may harm the commercial or financial interests of a third party);
- if disclosure would result in the breach of a duty of confidence owed to a third party;
- if disclosure would jeopardize the safety of an individual or prejudice or impair certain property rights of a third person;
- if the record was produced during legal proceedings, unless that legal privilege has been waived;
- if the record contains trade secrets, financial or sensitive information or any information that would put The Company (at a disadvantage in negotiations or prejudice it in commercial competition); and/or
- if the record contains information about research being carried out or about to be carried out on behalf of a third party or by The Company.
Section 70 PAIA contains an overriding provision. Disclosure of a record is compulsory if it would reveal (i) a substantial contravention of, or failure to comply with the law; or (ii) there is an imminent and serious public safety or environmental risk; and (iii) the public interest in the disclosure of the record in question clearly outweighs the harm contemplated by its disclosure.
If the request for access to information affects a third party, then such third party must first be informed within 21 (twenty-one) days of receipt of the request. The third party would then have a further 21 (twenty-one) days to make representations and/or submissions regarding the granting of access to the record.
14. REMEDIES AVAILABLE TO A REQUESTER ON REFUSAL OF ACCESS
If the Information Officer decides to grant you access to the particular record, such access must be granted within 30 (thirty) days of being informed of the decision.
There is no internal appeal procedure that may be followed after a request to access information has been refused. The decision made by the Information Officer is final. In the event that you are not satisfied with the outcome of the request, you are entitled to apply to the Information Regulator or a court of competent jurisdiction to take the matter further.
Where a third party is affected by the request for access and the Information Officer has decided to grant you access to the record, the third party has 30 (thirty) days in which to appeal the decision in a court of competent jurisdiction. If no appeal has been lodged by the third party within 30 (thirty) days, you must be granted access to the record.
15. AVAILABILITY OF THIS MANUAL
Copies of this Manual are available for inspection, free of charge, at the offices of The Company and Unit 4, 62 Blaauwberg Road, Tableview, Cape Town, 7580
16. ACCEPTANCE
Managing Director Thea Marais
21 November 2025