In his State of the Nation Address in February, President Jacob Zuma announced that the Department of Home Affairs will collaborate with financial institutions to expand its footprint in an effort to roll out the application of Smart ID Cards to the majority of South Africans.

Since the announcement, the Department of Home Affairs has been working tirelessly with individual financial institutions to finalise the necessary modalities in anticipation of the pilot phase and eventual rolling out of the project.

Minister Malusi Gigaba will make further announcements during the Department's Budget Vote in Parliament next month. The prospective partnership with the financial institutions adds further impetus to the Department's Modernisation Programme whose primary objective is to turn Home Affairs into a paperless organisation.

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ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HOME AFFAIRS