The Minister of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) has confirmed to Build One South Africa (BOSA) that not a single employee in the national or provincial public service has been screened against the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO). This is a staggering revelation concerning over 1.2 million state employees.
This admission was made in response to a parliamentary question posed by BOSA Deputy Leader, Nobuntu Hlazo-Webster MP. According to the Minister, the DPSA does not have access to the NRSO and therefore cannot check its employees against it.
Even more concerning is that the DPSA admits that it does not have any policy or requirement to routinely screen public servants, many of whom work directly with women, children, and vulnerable people, against the NRSO.
“If government departments themselves are not using the NRSO to vet public servants, then what is the point of maintaining the Register at all?” asks Hlazo-Webster. “This is yet another critical tool in the fight against gender-based violence that is being ignored by the very institutions meant to protect us.”
This failure comes amid South Africa’s ongoing sexual violence crisis:
- Over 42,700 rapes were reported in the 2023/24 financial year — more
- than 117 every day.
- A total of 54,885 sexual offences were reported last year, including rape,
- sexual assault, and related crimes.
- Over the past five years, more than 250,000 sexual offences have been
- recorded nationwide.
In light of this, BOSA is calling for immediate action:
- Mandatory NRSO screening for all state employees within the next three months.
- A formal DPSA policy requiring NRSO vetting in all national and provincial recruitment, promotion, and disciplinary processes.
- A public audit of all state employees dismissed in the past five years to determine how many had prior sexual offences.
The NRSO was established to protect South Africans from known sexual offenders. It is meaningless unless actively used, especially by the State in vetting those it employs to serve and protect the public.
The State’s continuous failure to effectively use the NSRO, further entrenches the call for the register to be made public.
Media Enquiries:
Roger Solomons – BOSA Spokesperson – 072 299 3551