1. Purpose and scope
Government websites are official public information platforms and form part of the official record of the department.
Departments must ensure that website content is:
- Accurate
- Authoritative
- Current
- Accessible
- Secure
- Professionally presented
Failure to properly maintain website content undermines public trust and the credibility of government communication.
Website content management is an ongoing governance responsibility and must not be treated as a once-off publishing function.
2. Governance and accountability
The departmental website forms an integral part of the department’s communication function and public interface.
The Head of Department (or delegated authority) remains ultimately accountable for the accuracy and integrity of information published on the website.
Departments must establish:
- Clear publishing authority and approval workflows
- Named content owners within each business unit
- Defined review cycles for all published content
- Documented procedures for content updates and removals
All content published on the website must be approved through established internal governance processes before publication.
3. Roles and responsibilities
Effective website management requires coordinated participation from business units, the Communications Unit, and the IT Unit.
3.1 Role of business units
All business units are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of content relating to their mandate.
Each business unit must:
- Appoint a content coordinator or designated official
- Identify information that must be published
- Review and verify the accuracy of existing content
- Notify the Communications Unit of updates or corrections
- Participate in scheduled content reviews
Business units are accountable for factual accuracy, policy correctness and relevance of their content.
3.2 Role of the Communications Unit
The departmental website must be managed within the Communications Unit, under the leadership of a designated Website Content Manager (or equivalent).
The Communications Unit is responsible for:
- Overall coordination and governance of website content
- Content planning and publishing schedules
- Editorial oversight and quality assurance
- Ensuring compliance with information architecture standards
- Ensuring compliance with accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1 AA or latest applicable standard)
- Ensuring adherence to government branding and digital standards
- Editing and rewriting content into plain language
- Final content approval prior to publication
- Monitoring content performance and user feedback
- Coordinating responses to public website-related queries
Where capacity allows, the following specialist roles may support the website function:
- Information architecture specialist
- Usability or user experience specialist
- Web author or content publisher
- Web designer
Where resource constraints exist, roles may be combined, provided that governance and accountability are clearly maintained.
3.3 Role of the IT Unit
The IT Unit is responsible for the technical infrastructure and security of the website.
The IT Unit must:
- Ensure stable hosting and infrastructure availability
- Monitor uptime and system performance
- Implement and maintain cybersecurity measures
- Conduct regular backups and ensure disaster recovery capability
- Maintain and update the content management system (CMS)
- Develop and maintain technical components and applications
- Provide technical support to the Communications Unit
- Monitor and address technical vulnerabilities
- Manage website integrations and databases
The IT Unit must ensure that technical changes do not compromise accessibility, usability, or content integrity.
The IT Unit remains responsible for safeguarding the website against security breaches, defacement or data loss.
4. Content lifecycle management
Website content must be actively managed throughout its lifecycle.
Departments must implement a structured content lifecycle that includes:
- Drafting
- Review and approval
- Publication
- Monitoring
- Periodic review
- Update, archive or removal
Each content item must have:
- A clearly identified content owner
- A publication date
- A defined review date (where applicable)
Outdated, duplicated or superseded content must be removed or archived in accordance with records management policies.
Website content forms part of official departmental records and must be managed accordingly.
5. Comprehensiveness of public information
All publicly releasable information relevant to the department’s mandate must be available on the website.
Information must provide sufficient detail for users to understand:
- The department’s role and functions
- Programmes and initiatives
- Policies and strategic documents
- Public services (where applicable)
- Contact information
Content must be logically grouped and presented in a manner that supports user understanding.
Sensitive, classified or restricted information must not be published.
6. Accuracy, authority and quality control
All website content must be factually correct and free of grammatical, language and spelling errors.
Before publication, content must undergo quality assurance to verify:
- Factual accuracy
- Correct attribution
- Proper formatting
- Accessibility compliance
- Functional links
To strengthen credibility:
- Speeches and interviews must display the name and portfolio of the speaker, the department name and the date delivered.
- Statements and advisories must display the issuing authority, release date and contact details.
- Events must display date, time, venue and contact details.
- Publications must display publication or release dates.
Where information is drawn from external sources, appropriate attribution must be provided.
Broken or outdated links must be corrected promptly through automated and manual link monitoring processes.
7. Currency and timeliness
Departments must ensure that website content remains current and relevant.
Time-sensitive information (such as statements, advisories, vacancies, bids and event notices) must:
- Be published without delay once approved for public release
- Display the date of issue
- Display an expiry date where applicable
Printed materials released into the public domain must be made available online at the same time.
Obsolete or expired content must be removed or archived promptly.
Users must be able to determine the currency of content through visible publication or review dates.
8. Accessibility and compliance
All website content must comply with applicable accessibility standards.
Departments must ensure:
- Proper heading hierarchy
- Descriptive link text
- Accessible document formats
- Adequate colour contrast
- Keyboard navigability
- Compatibility with assistive technologies
Accessibility compliance must be verified before publication and monitored continuously.
9. Management of interactive features
Where the website includes interactive features (e.g. feedback forms, comment functions, discussion platforms or social integrations), departments must:
- Establish moderation and response protocols
- Define response time standards
- Ensure appropriate monitoring
- Protect personal information in compliance with applicable legislation
- Provide clear terms of use
Interactive platforms must be actively managed to prevent misuse, misinformation or reputational risk.
10. Monitoring, analytics and continuous improvement
Departments must monitor website performance and user behaviour to inform improvements.
Approved analytics tools must be used to monitor:
- Number of users and visits
- Page views
- Most and least frequently accessed pages
- Entry and exit pages
- Search queries
- Failed searches
- Error rates
Analytics findings must be used to:
- Improve navigation
- Identify content gaps
- Improve clarity of information
- Enhance user experience
Website performance should be reviewed regularly and reported to relevant management structures.
11. Review and continuous improvement
Departments must conduct periodic audits of:
- Content accuracy
- Information architecture
- Accessibility compliance
- Technical stability
- Security posture
Websites must evolve in response to user needs, technological developments and government standards.