The Company Secretary

According to the Companies Act What is a Company Secretary?

The defines the company secretary as an officer of the company. And according to the South African Companies Act, all public and state-owned companies are leally required to have a company secretary.

Besides having administrational duties, the company secretary is expected to have a deep understanding of the company and how it operates.

Roles and Responsibility of the Company Secretary

Here are some generic roles and responsibilities as described by Section 88(1) - (2) of the Act:

• instructing members of the board about their duties and powers
• reminding board members of their responsibilities
• ensuring director compliance with laws relating to the above and any specifics mentioned in the Memorandum of Incorporation of the company
• preparing and distributing board meeting minutes
• recording meeting and minutes for board meetings, including but not limited to the company's audit committee

There is more information about these roles and responsibilities in this 2017 CIPC document, which can be found here:

GUIDANCE NOTE 1 0F 2017: THE ROLE OF THE COMPANY SECRETARY IN A MODERN COMPANY