GOOD news for ID applicants as Home Affairs clears backlog
The Department of Home Affairs has cleared a backlog of 247 500 identity documents which had started accumulating since November 2023 following a change in IT service providers.
In a statement on Wednesday, the department said the changeover created a bottleneck in multiple areas in the production value chain. This impacted the office of application, application authentication, printing, and the final issuing of the ID.
“The changeover created a bottleneck in multiple areas in the production value chain, from the office of application to application authentication to printing and to the final issuing of the ID. As a result, nearly a quarter of a million applications became ‘stuck’ in a growing backlog,” said the department’s minister, Leon Schreiber.
“The clearing of the ID backlog, which had been accumulating since November 2023, within a single month, serves as yet more tangible proof that long-standing challenges at Home Affairs can be resolved when we work in a systematic and focused manner.
“The clearing of this specific backlog also signifies our commitment to turn Home Affairs into a powerful economic enabler, as the individuals affected by the backlog can now seek employment, open accounts, and gain access to social grants,” Schreiber added.
Moreover, Schreiber said this action should lead to growing confidence in the department’s ability to drive the reforms required for Home Affairs to deliver dignity to all.
Home Affairs working on visa backlog
Meanwhile, Home Affairs is also making progress in reducing the visa backlog and taking steps towards digital transformation.
“We still have much more to do. Our apex priority is the wholesale digital transformation of Home Affairs to create a new system where South Africans should be able to submit ID and other applications from the comfort of their own home through a digital platform, followed by the delivery of these documents to their doorstep,” said Schreiber.
“We call this vision ‘Home Affairs @ home’, and we are committed to realising it with the same systematic approach that enabled us to clear the ID backlog,” the minister said.
Home Affairs has also extended office hours on every Saturday, between 08:00 and 13:00, until Saturday, 12 October to enable clients to collect their IDs and other civic documentation.
This past Saturday, more than 9 200 people reportedly took advantage of the opportunity.
Were you one of the 247 500 waiting impatiently for your new ID?
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