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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2022 Dec 1.
Published in final edited form as: S Afr Med J. 2016 Feb 2;106(3):256–259. doi: 10.7196/SAMJ.2016.v106i3.9877

Table 2.

The reporting and service delivery obligations of healthcare providers

Age Consensual/non-consensual sex or
sexual activity		 Reporting requirement Sexual and reproductive healthcare services
Under 12 All acts of a sexual nature with this group are rape. Consent even if voluntarily given is not recognised as being legally valid. Report Children under 12 years of age should be provided with access to terminations of pregnancy, and HIV testing if they have sufficient maturity.
12 – 15 Consensual Do not report Children in these age categories should be provided with a range of sexual and reproductive healthcare services, including:

  • Contraceptives

  • HIV testing

  • Terminations of pregnancy

  • Treatment of STIs
Non-consensual Report
(14 or 15) and 16 Consensual Do not report
Non-consensual Report
15 and 17 Consensual Do not report
Non-consensual Report
(12 or 13) and 16 All acts of a sexual nature with this age group are a crime: statutory rape or sexual violation. Consent not even considered because age gap is >2 years. Report
(12 or 13 or 14) and 17 All acts of a sexual nature with this age group are a crime: statutory rape or sexual violation. Consent not even considered because age gap is >2 years. Report