Home Affairs deployed mobile offices to more than 1 600 schools during the first quarter of this year, allowing learners to apply for and receive their first identity cards and other documentation.
The department says that 37 214 learners at 1 625 schools were able to receive documentation without having to spend time and money visiting Home Affairs offices.
“Our goal remains the complete digital transformation and automation of all Home Affairs processes to make it more secure and convenient to obtain civic documentation,” says Home Affairs minister Leon Schreiber.
“However, even while we work to put in place the reforms required to turn the department into a digital-first organisation, we are also finding innovative ways to improve our existing service offering. This project is a good example of our commitment to continuously improve our use of the tools currently at our disposal to deliver dignity, even as we work at speed to bring about the digital transformation of the Department.”
The partnership with the Department of Basic Education has extended Home Affairs services to rural provinces like Limpopo, where 8 765 leaners applied for IDs at their schools between April and June 2024. Another 5 763 learners in the Eastern Cape and 3 799 also applied in KwaZulu-Natal in this period.
During the same period, the Department assisted 44 619 adults to apply for their IDs via mobile offices.
In total, Home Affairs assisted 81 833 people to apply for their IDs right where they live between April and June 2024.