Archival orthodoxy of post-custodial realities for digital records in South Africa

Abstract

Some public entities in South Africa have implemented digital records systems over a period of 20 years. In terms of the South African archival legal framework, there is a need for such entities to transfer the records into archival custody. However, there is consensus among researchers that there is no infrastructure to ingest digital records into archival custody in South Africa. Furthermore, some public entities have migrated from one system to another since implementation and there is a possibility that records might have been lost during migration. This study demonstrates through literature review the unconscious archival orthodoxy of post-custodial realities in South Africa. The study recommends that public entities should apply for exemption from archival legislation in order to develop an interim solution for the preservation of digital records. The National Archives and Records Service of South Africa (NARSSA) is also encouraged to develop a policy on distributed custody to allow government entities to create interim solutions for preserving digital records. Both public entities and NARSSA should invest in capacity development, including training and provision of sustainable infrastructure required to preserve digital records. It is hoped that this study will influence policy-making with regard to custody of digital records. Background to the problem Although public entities in South Africa began to implement systems to manage digital records in the early 1990s, these measures have not yet translated into a systematic program of digital transfers into archival custody in a digital repository. Bak 1 identifies major components or functions of digital repositories as metadata management systems, storage location, content management systems, authentication systems and digital preservation. While the implementation of digital records management has begun, the infrastructure for ingesting into a digital repository does not yet exist. As a consequence, to avoid the loss of important digital records in the near term, interim measures are needed and it is the purpose of this paper to identify what these could be. Among the agencies that have implemented digital records management is Rand Water, a water utility company in South Africa. This was one of the earliest public institutions to

Separating the wheat from the chaff with the winnowing fork

“…This allows NARSSA to insist that mechanisms and procedures be put in place to ensure that archival records are identified while still functional and then preserved appropriately. However, although this is reflected in the policy, in reality, this is the opposite as Ngoepe (2017) reported that, in practice, many governmental entities destroy digital records when records are no longer needed for their current needs. This is so because NARRSA and the provincial archives in South Africa do not have the necessary infrastructure to ingest digital records of enduring value into archival custody (Ngoepe, 2017).…”

“…However, although this is reflected in the policy, in reality, this is the opposite as Ngoepe (2017) reported that, in practice, many governmental entities destroy digital records when records are no longer needed for their current needs. This is so because NARRSA and the provincial archives in South Africa do not have the necessary infrastructure to ingest digital records of enduring value into archival custody (Ngoepe, 2017). Although NARSSA propagates for the earliest possible transfer into archival custody of digital records with enduring value, this is not happening as alluded to above.…”

The application of legislative frameworks for the management of medical records in Limpopo Province, South Africa

“…Several scholars have conducted studies investigating the legislative framework guiding records management in the public sector in South Africa (Ngoepe 2017;Katuu 2016;Ngoepe 2016;Ngoepe and Saurombe 2016;Katuu and Van der Walt 2016;Ngoepe and Makhubela 2015;Ngoepe and Makhura 2008). However, these studies did not specifically focus on the application of legislative frameworks in managing medical records in Limpopo Province.…”

When rain clouds gather: Digital curation of South African public records in the cloud

“…In South Africa, the responsibility of regulating government records falls under the auspices of the National Archives and Records Services (NARSSA) in the Department of Arts and Culture (DAC), which according to Ngoepe (2017) does not have the necessary infrastructure to manage and preserve digital records. As a result, digital records are left to the creating agencies to manage and preserve.…”

“…Notwithstanding the importance of cloud storage, the challenge with the current practice in the context of the South African government still remains as records are stored on the premises of each department's registries manned by untrained registry clerks. Only a few governmental bodies have automated their records management programme (Ngoepe 2017). Pickover and Harris (2001) maintained that traditional paper-based records are likely to be inefficiently provided with resources, manned by junior records practitioners with little status and subject to high turnover rates, and incorrectly connected, if at all, to a parallel or similar electronic records management system.…”