Education department wins legal battle over 2024 matric results

The Department of Basic Education (DBE) is set to publish the latest matric results in South Africa’s newspapers following a ruling by the Gauteng High Court.

The Information Regulator’s (IR’s) attempt to stop the publication of the 2024 matric results in South Africa’s newspapers has been thrown out by the Gauteng High Court – with costs.

Currently, the department publishes the marks alongside the person’s student number.

The regulator issued an Enforcement Notice to the DBE on 18 November 2024.

It ordered that the department “must not publish the results for the 2024 matriculants in newspapers and must make these results available to the learners using methods that are compliant with POPIA.”

Although the Department submitted an appeal within the required 31-day deadline on 19 December 2024, the IR received it seven days late.

The IR then issued an infringement notice to the department on Monday (23 December) in which it ordered the DBE to pay an administrative fine of R5 million following claims that the Department failed to comply with the Enforcement Notice.

The IR then approached the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria with an urgent application to interdict the publication of the results in newspapers.

Judge Ronal Tolmay heard arguments on urgency on Tuesday, 7 January.

On Wednesday, 8 January, the judge said that the matter was not urgent and struck it from the roll with costs.

She added that the publication of the results lies more in a disagreement between the parties, as there have been no complaints by students in terms of POPIA laid with her, and no indication of prejudice to learners.

She noted that the parties must determine what will be in the best interest of the learners, with the matter still not resolved despite the interdict being thrown out.

The department is set to publish the matric results in newspapers on 13 January 2025.

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