SOUTH AFRICAN POST OFFICE: RESERVED SERVICES EXCLUSIVITY PERIOD TO BE REVIEWED

SOUTH AFRICAN POST OFFICE: RESERVED SERVICES EXCLUSIVITY PERIOD TO BE REVIEWED

• 05 February 2024
• Communications & Digital Technologies
• SA Legal Academy

The Department of Communications & Digital Technologies has gazetted a notice announcing a review of the period during which only the South African Post Office may provide services reserved in terms of Schedule 1 of the Postal Services Act, 1998. Interested and affected parties have until 6 March 2024 to submit input to that process.

According to the notice, services reserved for the South African Post Office are:

• the delivery of all postal articles under 1kg in weight
• issuing postage stamps
• providing roadside collection and address boxes, and
• providing retail outlets at which these services may be accessed.

Sub-section 16(3) of the Act provides for a period of validity of 25 years in respect of services these reserved services and came into effect on 1 April 2000.

This notwithstanding, the Postal Services Amendment Act, 2006 provides that:

• in the context of section 16, as regulator the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa may only accept and consider an application for a licence to provide a reserved postal service in accordance with a policy direction issued by the Minister
• the regulator may not limit the Minister’s powers in respect of any such policy direction, and that
• the Minister should review any such policy direction within five years.

Please click the links below for more information:

• Government Gazette notice
• Postal Services Act, 1998
• Postal Services Amendment Act, 2006

Published by SA Legal Academy Policy Watch

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