IMPROVING LIVES THROUGH DATA ECOSYSTEMS

BREAK OF EMBARGO

Media Announcement

1 March 2016

Break of Embargo for GDP estimates of the fourth quarter of 2015 

As the official statistics agency of South Africa, Statistics South Africa is guided by the 10 fundamental principles of official statistics. Principle 1 that deals with “relevance, impartiality and equal access” requires that care is taken that no party has pre-sight into any of the statistics.

This is done through assigning strict embargo dates and times to publications, such as the gross domestic product (GDP) and the consumer price index (CPI). In the case of the GDP, the embargo for the 4th quarter results for 2015 was 1 March 2016, 11h30. As was the case in the past, a lock-up procedure was facilitated that provides an opportunity for Stats SA to present the latest results and allow for discussion prior to the embargo. This is done to ensure that when

users such as journalists communicate the results to the public, reporting can be done as professionally and quickly as possible and without any errors.

This process relies on self-policing of the media houses, a practice that was re-affirmed after an embargo breach was detected in February 2014. Stats SA relies on the integrity of the media houses not to publish the results prior to the agreed embargo.

Unfortunately the embargo was not respected during today’s release of the GDP when a representative of ENCA tweeted the results prior to 11h30. This is clearly in breach of the agreed protocol and in spite of the programme director informing attendees of the embargo and the confirmation of the embargo on the material that was distributed.

This incidence not only caused disharmony within the electronic media space, but gave unfair advantage over media that was represented at the session to report on the data, and violated the Statistics Act 6 of 1999. Stats SA has enjoyed a relationship of trust with the media on such sensitive data, hence this situation threatens the relationship that we have built with economic journalists over the years. Stats SA will again review the existing measures that are in place to ensure that such digressions are eliminated, since the belief held by the organisation is that we operate within a professional media environment that respects its own professional ethics as well as those of Stats SA.

Stats SA regrets this unfortunate incident and views it as a serious case of contempt of our professional ethics, and has thus barred ENCA from all forthcoming media events of the organisation for the next three months. Repeat offences of this nature will naturally attract harsher sanctions.

Trevor Oosterwyk

Stats SA Head of Communications