Legal

PAIA Manual

Section 51, Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2 of 2000 · Last updated: August 2026

Every private body in South Africa must publish a manual describing the records it holds and how a person may ask to see them. This is ours.

01About This Manual

This manual is published in terms of section 51 of the Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2 of 2000 ("PAIA"). It describes the records held by Xkimi Xa Mali Foundation and explains how a person may request access to them. The Foundation is a private, invite-only savings collective. Requests and enquiries under this manual should be directed to the Information Officer via the Support page.

02The Section 10 Guide

The Information Regulator has compiled a guide, in terms of section 10 of PAIA, explaining how to use the Act. It is available from the Information Regulator (South Africa), JD House, 27 Stiemens Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, 2001, by email at inforeg@inforegulator.org.za, or from inforegulator.org.za.

03Records We Hold

The Foundation holds records in the following categories. Governance: the constitution, minutes and resolutions of meetings, and the register of office bearers. Membership: the register of members, invitations to join, records of member status and resignation, and consents given. Financial: records of every contribution, records of payments made from the pool and the Goal each served, the general ledger, bank records, debit order mandates, and annual financial statements. Operational: the audit log of administrative actions, records of communications sent to members, and system access records. Listing a category here does not mean those records are automatically available — access is decided on request.

04Records Available Without a Request

A member does not need to invoke PAIA to see their own record. A member's contribution history, their personal information, and the status and progress of every Goal are available in the member portal at any time, and a member's own record can be downloaded. The constitution is available to any member on request, and annual financial statements are presented to members at the annual general meeting. The Foundation's position is that a member's record belongs to that member.

05How to Request Access

A request must be made on the prescribed form published by the Information Regulator and delivered to the Information Officer. It must contain enough detail to identify the record and the requester, an address for reply, and the form of access required. Where the request is made to exercise or protect a right, it must state what that right is and how the record would assist. A requester seeking their own personal information does not pay a request fee; other requests attract the request and access fees prescribed by regulation. The Information Officer will decide within 30 days and respond in writing. Where an extension is needed, the requester will be told before the 30 days expire.

06Grounds for Refusal

Access may or must be refused on the grounds set out in Chapter 4 of PAIA. Because almost every record the Foundation holds concerns identifiable members, the most likely ground is the protection of the personal information of a third party, where disclosure would be unreasonable. Other grounds include commercial information of a third party, information supplied in confidence, information whose disclosure could endanger a person's life or safety, and records protected by legal professional privilege. Where a request is refused, reasons will be given.

07Remedies

A requester who is dissatisfied with a decision may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator, or apply to a court with jurisdiction. There is no internal appeal against a decision of a private body under PAIA.