National Archives and Records Service of South Africa

National Archives and Records Service of South Africa State of archives and the challenges in South Africa: Strategic overview and future plans [Presentation to the Portfolio Committee] Ms N. Dingayo 01 March 2016

OUTLINE OF THE PRESENTATION 1. Introduction 2. Role of the National Archival and Records Management System 3. Linkages to National Outcomes and other developmental objectives 4. Legislative Framework 5. the Act 6. 5. 1 Functions of National Archives Repository 5. 2 Functions of Records Management 5. 3 Functions of Preservation : Conservation Laboratory 5. 4 Functions of Preservation : Strong room management 5. 5 Functions of NFVSA Budget 2 2

OUTLINE OF THE PRESENTATION (CONT. ) 7. Organisational structure 8. Stakeholders 9 Current Projects 9. 1 Rivonia Trial Dictabelts 9. 2 Rivonia Trial Digitisation Project 9. 3 Heating Ventilation and Air-conditioning (HVAC) 9. 4 Revamping of NAAIRS and the website 9. 5 Upgrading of Old Library Building 9. 6 Oral History Programme 10. Challenges 11. Future plans to address the challenges 12. Conclusion 3 3

ACRONYMS • ATo. M - Access to Memory • AFDA - African Film Drama Academy ( the South African School of Motion picture medium and live performance) • COGTA - Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs • DPSA - Department of Public Service and Administration • ESARBICA - Eastern and Southern African Regional Branch of the International Council on Archives • FIAF -Federation of International Film Archives • FIAT - Federation of International Television Archives • HVAC - Heating Ventilation and Air-conditioning • IASA - International Association of Sound and Audio Visual Archives • ICA - International Council on Archives • ICT - Information and Communication Technology • ICTM - International Council for Traditional Music • INA - L’institut National de l’audiovisuel • ISO - International Standards Organisation • MISS - Minimum Information Security Standards • MPSS - Minimum Physical Security Standards 4 4

ACRONYMS (CONT. ) • Mo. W- Memory of the World • NAAC - National Archives Advisory Council • NAAIRS - National Automated Archival Information Retrieval System • NARSSA - National Archives and Records Service of South Africa • NFVSA – National Film Video and Sound Archives • NMF - Nelson Mandela Foundation • OHASA - Oral History Association of South Africa • RISA - Recording Industry of South Africa • P o A - Programme of Action • RM- Records Management • SASA - South African Society of Archivists • SABC – South African Broadcasting Corporation • SALGA - South African Local Government Association • SAPCON - South African Preservation and Conservation Group • SARMAF - South African Records Management Forum • SITA - State Information and Technology Agency 5 5

1. INTRODUCTION • The National Archives and Records Service of South Africa was established by the promulgation of the National Archives of South Africa Act (Act No. 43 of 1996) as amended; • This piece of legislation transformed the former State Archives Service into the National Archives and Records Service of South Africa whose mission, function and structure reflect the post apartheid political order; • The archives constitute a vital part of the nation’s heritage and are a means of enhancing national identity, nation building and empowerment; 6 6

2. THE ROLE OF THE NATIONAL ARCHIVAL AND RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM • Key mandates of the National Archives and Records Service as outlined throughout the Act – Section 5(1): Arrangement, Description and Retrieval of Records – Section 5(2): Provision of training, cooperation with likeminded organizations, and provision of professional and technical support. – Section 11: Custody and preservation of records – Section 12: Access and use – Section 13: Management of public records 7 7

3. LINKAGES TO NATIONAL OUTCOMES AND OTHER DEVELOPMENTAL OBJECTIVES The National Archives contribute to the Government’s Programme of Action (POA) in Outcome 14 viz. Nation Building and Social Cohesion in the following manner: • by ensuring an inclusive archives with information that is open and accessible to all South Africans. • through its regulatory role regarding records management in government to ensure proper management and care of public records which is fundamental for transparent and accountable government. Support developmental objectives : - Human Rights Proper records management enhances the ability of governments to protect the rights of its citizens and to improve citizen-government interaction. The rights and entitlements of citizens are based on records, and the ability of a government to continue to respect these rights and entitlements is based on the quality of the policies, standards, and practices employed for the care of those records. 8 8

3. LINKAGES TO NATIONAL OUTCOMES AND OTHER DEVELOPMENTAL OBJECTIVES CONTINUES… Support developmental objectives: Governance and accountability • Government is expected to be transparent, open, and engaged with their citizens. And citizens are becoming more aware and concerned about their roles in the governance of the country. • They want to have trust in their government, and they expect it to function in a manner that engenders this sense of trust. Records, and the evidence they contain, are the instruments by which governments can promote citizen trust and demonstrate an overall commitment to good government. • Accountability is critical to a responsible government. The foundation for accountability is proper management and care of public records. Records need to be managed in a way that ensures integrity and authenticity. 9 9

3. LINKAGES TO NATIONAL OUTCOMES AND OTHER DEVELOPMENTAL OBJECTIVES CONTINUES… Support developmental objectives: Anti-Corruption Financial records that are not properly managed and controlled create opportunities for fraud, leads to loss of revenue, and impedes fiscal planning. This leads to difficulties to preserve an audit trail of decisions, actions, and transactions. Properly managed records can serve as evidence to identify abuse, misuse, and non-compliance with financial instructions and other laws and regulations. Without well-managed records anti-corruption strategies are impaired. Support developmental objectives: Financial Management Proper record management is essential to clear and accountable financial management. Without accurate records of actual expenditures, the process of preparing budgets can become almost meaningless. Good record keeping is crucial in the entire accounting function, for reporting and auditing purposes. Debt management becomes easy because records of borrowing that may be held by different government offices can be easily accessible. 10 10

3. LINKAGES TO NATIONAL OUTCOMES AND OTHER DEVELOPMENTAL OBJECTIVES CONTINUES… Support developmental Objectives : Resources Management of Human Improved human resource management is central to good policy management in government. Public sector reform programmes include a significant reduction in the size of the public service, governments are unable to find the basic information needed to accomplish this task, such as accurate staff numbers, details of their grades, and location or dates of appointment. A well developed capacity to manage electronic records as legally verifiable evidence of entitlements, contractual obligations, policies, or transactions for the period required, a mixed media, paper/electronic, human resource information system is essential. 11 11

3. LINKAGES TO NATIONAL OUTCOMES AND OTHER DEVELOPMENTAL OBJECTIVES CONTINUES… Support developmental objectives: Private sector investment Weaknesses in government record keeping can adversely affect private sector investment. Large-scale infrastructure investments, such as the construction of gas pipelines, may be delayed or may incur significant additional costs if government land registries cannot provide complete and definitive statements of titles to property. Poor record keeping can contribute to a lowering of the general standard of service offered to businesses by not providing required information timeously. Support developmental objectives: Land Reform Land reform and land restitution are key issues currently being implemented by government. People take better care of land are more productive when they know they can prove their title deed or claim to the land can buy, sell, or lease land with assurance that their rights to do so will be respected. All such rights, claims, title deed, etc are managed through records. Consequently, good records management is essential for good transparent management that in turn leads to security, better land management, and better economic development. 12 12

3. LINKAGES TO NATIONAL OUTCOMES AND OTHER DEVELOPMENTAL OBJECTIVES CONTINUES… Main functions of the archives • Preservation of history and social memory and making it accessible to the public • Promotion of social cohesion, social justice and human rights • Promotion of good governance • Source of information and knowledge 13 13

4. LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK • The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996; • The National Archives and Records Service of South Africa Act (Act No. 43 of 1996 as amended) • The Legal Deposit Act (Act No. 54 of 1997) • The Copyright Act (Act No. 98 of 1978 as amended); • The Public Finance management Act (Act No. 1 of 1999); • The Promotion of Access to Information Act (Act No. 2 of 2000); • The Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (Act no. 3 of 2000); • The Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (Act No. 25 of 2002); • Protection of Personal Information Act (Act No. 4 of 2013); • Revised White Paper on Arts, Culture and Heritage; and • Minimum Information Security Standards (MISS). 14 14

5. OBJECTS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES IN TERMS OF SECTION 3 OF THE ACT 15 15

5. 1 Functions of National Archives Repository • • • Collect records of archival value Transfer A 20 records from client offices Arrange and Describe record-to create inventories/finding aids Management of collections i. e. cartographic, photographic, sensitive records including microfilms Supply Services-government departments Data Coding of records Provide access to records-Reading Room- incl. Sensitive Records Promote the use of Archives and collections through public programmes Oral history Programme- training of leaners, collection of histories and hosting annual conferences Assist with Archives related projects- Mo. W, ESARBICA 16 16

5. 2 Functions of Records Management The National Archives and Records Service of South Africa Act (Act No. 43 of 1996 as amended)(NARSSA Act) gives the National Archives a regulatory role regarding records management in government. • Section 13 of the Act clearly states the responsibility of proper management and care of public records in the custody of governmental bodies. • RM examines public records with a view to issuing disposal authorities on all public records to enable governmental bodies to dispose of records no longer required for functional purposes. 17 17

5. 3 Functions of Preservation : Conservation Laboratory • Archival Repair – Documents – Maps – Books – Photographs – Others (e. g. cleaning of records, etc. ) • Protection of collections at risk – Box-making – Encapsulation – Portfolios and folders – Albums – others • Bookbinding – Hand binding – Spiral binding – Machine binding 18 18

5. 4 Functions of Preservation : Strong room Maintenance • Day to day monitoring of the storage environment for records – Climate control, fire protection and detection • Risk management – Ensure regular inspections of storage facilities and report any threats to collections. • Manage the implementation of pest control – Scheduled fumigation, outbreaks 19 19

5. 5 Functions of NFVSA • Outreach: This section is responsible for taking the Cinema to the People. To promote the work of the NFVSA through exhibitions, promotions and workshops. • Sound Preservation: Trace, collect, accession and preserve sound recordings including music that was recorded in or about South Africa and by South Africans. • Film and Video: Trace, collect, accession and preserve films and videos made in or about South Africa. • Legal Deposit and Cataloguing: • Implement provisions made in the act and create a national audio visual bibliography. • Special Projects Oral History Recordings, Digitisation projects, NAAIRS, Recordings of important meetings and celebrations to preserve for posterity, 20 20

Project Definition - Security Services: Functions • Implementation of appropriate security measures to protect archival records (National Archives and Record Service of South Africa Regulations, 2002, Part V, Section 10 (1) (b); • Implementation of the Minimum Information Security Standards (MISS); • Implementation of the Minimum Physical Security Standards (MPSS); • Implementation of the DAC Security Policy and Directives; and • Monitoring compliance to security rules and regulations, investigate noncompliances and report back. 21 21

Project Definition - Admin & Coordination Functions (1) • Management of movable and immovable assets within the archives; • Document management/management of workflow and do quality control on correspondence; • Preparation and coordination of reports(monthly, quarterly, annual, MTEF, ENE, other ad hoc reports/etc. ); • Risk status updating/monitoring (Risk Management); • Provision of secretarial/coordination support services to the National Archives Advisory Council , National and Provincial Heads of Archives Forum; 22 22

6. BUDGET • Budget allocation for 2015/2016 is R 41 739. m ( COE R 30 357. m and G&S R 11 382) • Budget allocation for 2016/17 is R 40 343. m (COE R 29 587 and G&S R 10 756. m) 23 23

7. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE NATIONAL ARCHIVIST (Chief Directorate) NATIONAL ARCHIVES (Directorate) PRESERVATION MANAGEMENT (Sub-Directorate) NATIONAL ARCHIVES REPOSITORY (Sub-Directorate) NATIONAL FILM VIDEO AND SOUND ARCHIVES (Sub-Directorate) RECORDS MANAGEMENT AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS (Directorate) SECURITY SERVICES (Sub-Directorate) Administration and Coordination (Division) 24 24

8. STAKEHOLDERS • Department of Arts and Culture (DAC); • All national departments, Ministries, Deputy Ministries and governmental bodies • National Archives Advisory Council (NAAC) • National and Provincial Heads of Archives Forum (NPHAF); • Archival Platform; • South African Society of Archivists (SASA); • South African Records Management Forum (SARMAF); • AGSA Records Management Stakeholders Forum. The following institutions are stakeholders in this forum: the Presidency, the Auditor General, the National Treasury, the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA), the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), South African Local Government Association (SALGA) and the State Information and Technology Agency (SITA). The Forum mutually acknowledges the importance of effective and efficient management of public records as a cornerstone of an open and accountable government; • South African Preservation and Conservation Group (SAPCON); 25 25

8. STAKEHOLDERS continues… South African Partners • Oral History Association of South Africa (OHASA); • Recording Industry of South Africa (RISA); • Government Audiovisual Stakeholders Forum; • African Film Drama Academy (AFDA) ( the South African School of Motion picture medium and live performance • Gauteng Film Commission; • Durban Music House; • Music Expo; • The Refinery; • Videolab; • SABC Archives; • Legal Deposit Committee; • South African Bureau of Standards; and • Nelson Mandela Foundation. 26 26

8. STAKEHOLDERS continues… International Partners • International Council on Archives (ICA); • Eastern and Southern African Branch of the International Council on Archives (ESARBICA); • UNESCO Memory of the World Programme; • Federation of International Film Archives (FIAF); • Federation of International Television Archives (FIAT); • International Association of Sound and Audio Visual Archives (IASA); • L’institut National de l’audiovisuel (INA); • International Council for Traditional Music (ICTM); • International Standards Organisation (ISO). 27 27

9. CURRENT PROJECTS • Rivonia Trial Dictabelt Project; • Rivonia Trial Digitisation Project; • Revamping of the NARSSA Website Project; • Capital Works Projects; and • Annual Oral History Conference 28 28

9. 1 Rivonia Trial Dictabelts • On 10 October 2014 the Dictabelt Project started when the Acting Director. General of DAC, Mr Vuyo Jack, symbolically handed over a sample of the dictabelts of the Rivonia Trail to the French Ambassador, Ms Elisabeth Barbier, at a handover function at the National Archives and Records Service of SA; and • On 12 October 2014 two archivists of the National Archives and Records Service of SA took the first consignment of the dictabelts of the Rivonia Trial to France where INA will digitise the analogue audio recordings • This phase of the project is expected to conclude on the 15 March 2016 when a final handover will be done from the President of INA to the Minister of Arts and Culture of South Africa • The next phase includes training for South African Archivists to continue with the digitisation of the remaining dictabelts in our collections and will be extended to include the relevant provinces 29 29

9. 2 Rivonia Trial Digitisation Project • An agreement was signed between NARSSA and the Nelson Mandela Foundation(NMF) to digitise the Rivonia Trial records donated to DAC (NARSSA) by the Brenthurst Library; • The actual digitisation was done by a service provider while the NARSSA is responsible to do the quality control and to assist the NMF in describing the images in Ato. M; and • The project has been completed and the digitised records will be handed over to the Nelson Mandela Foundation and Brenthurst Library in March 2016. 30 30

9. 3 Heating Ventilation and Air conditioning (HVAC) Project • Re-design of the front entrance of the building and the security control room; • Connected to this, all the security systems throughout the building would receive attention; • Replacement of the entire fire detection and suppression systems in the building; • Replacement of the entire air-conditioning and ventilation systems in the building to ensure that all the records are kept at the correct temperature and the correct humidity; • Replacement of the static shelves in the strongrooms with mobile shelves. Mobile shelving would create more than 20% additional space in each strongroom (Total = ± 15 000 linear metres); • Most of the work outside the strongrooms, such as the re-design of the front entrance, replacing the security systems and the air-conditioning systems, is at an advanced stage. 31 31

9. 4 Revamping of the NAAIRS & NARSSA Website Projects The status of the Revamping of the NAAIRS Project and the New NARSSA Website Projects is at 94%. Staff is currently loading content to the new NARSSA website. Due to the interdependency between these projects they will be implemented concurrently. During the next few weeks staff will be doing user acceptance testing and also be testing the interface between new website and the Ato. M. The go-live date is by end of March 2016. 32 32

9. 5 Old Library Building The project was split into two. The first and smaller project entailed the renovation of floors 6 and 7 of the repository building (Block C). It cost R 2 266 899. 80, including VAT. The second and main project which consists of the refurbishment of the rest of the complex commenced on 17 October 2014 when the complex was handed over to the contractor. The project cost was set at R 84 413 903, 76 and the contract period will be 21 months. The contract completion date is October 2016; 33 33

9. 6 Annual Oral History Conference • The 12 th Annual Oral History Conference was held in Kwa. Zulu Natal from 13 -16 October 2015 and the 13 th conference will be held in Limpopo province. 34 34

10. CHALLENGES • Legislation Archival legislation in most institutions is out-dated and needs to be reviewed and costed. • Severe staff shortages The whole archival system has staff shortages and skills gaps in some critical functional areas • Inadequate budget Budget allocation for Archives and Records Service is extremely minimal • Obsolete systems and equipment; and • Professional training. 35 35

10. CHALLENGES continues… • Infrastructure Inadequate space to house the accrual of records Inadequate Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Infrastructure • Obsolete systems and equipment; ICT systems are old and equipment is obsolete • Professional training. Few academic institutions providing Archival qualification 36 36

11. FUTURE PLANS TO ADDRESS THE CHALLENGES • The amendment and costing of the NARSSA Act • A costed feasibility report on a possible conditional grant will be submitted to National Treasury and Provincial Treasuries • Submission of business case to the DAC for prioritisation of funds for the function. • Strengthening partnerships with key stakeholders in the provision of archival and records management services • Discussions regarding decentralisation of archive services • Investigate possibility of introducing an Integrated File Plan • Provision of bursaries to address scarce skills • Provision of training on archival functions • Enhanced efforts on digitisation of archival heritage 37 37

11. FUTURE PLANS TO ADDRESS THE CHALLENGES continues… Revamping of the NAAIRS Project (Phase 2) Phase two will include the implementation of Archivematica, an automated file tracking system, E-commerce, interaction with the provincial archival services systems, a thesaurus to improve the search functionality in the NAAIRS, links to different databases on other relevant websites, and collaboration with participating institutions, interoperability with Quadriga, etc. 38 38

12. CONCLUSION The provision of an Archival and Records Management service in South Africa depends on the will of government to understand the function well, elevate it to the level it deserves and provide the necessary resources. Support by the stakeholders is crucial, hence the enhancement and strengthening of partnerships is key to the turnaround strategy 39 39

Thank you 40 40