ID backlog cleared within a month

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The Department of Home Affairs has announce that managed to fully clear the backlog of Identity Documents (IDs) within the space of one month.

According to the department, the backlog started to accumulate in November 2023 following a change in IT service providers.

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, Minister Dr Leon Schreiber cited.

He added that as a result, nearly a quarter of a million applications became “stuck” in a growing backlog and today [Wednesday], the number is zero, with the backlog completely eradicated.

“As part of the department’s commitment to clearing backlogs and enhancing efficiency, on 21 August 2024, Home Affairs consolidated all of the “stuck” IDs into a single database in order to systematically clear the backlog. On that day, there were 247 500 IDs in the backlog.

“Since then, officials have worked tirelessly to ensure that applications are “unstuck” in order for IDs to reach clients who were waiting to gain access to this important piece of civic documentation, without which they cannot become active participants in the economy,” the minister said.

Schreiber highlighted that this serves as yet more tangible proof that long standing challenges at home affairs can be resolved when they work in a systematic and focused manner.

He continued; “This achievement, alongside our progress in reducing the visa backlog, reforming regulations to attract tourism, skills and investment, as well as the important initial steps we are taking towards digital transformation.

“This should lead to growing confidence in our ability to drive the reforms required for Home Affairs to deliver dignity to all.

“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.”

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Minister Schreiber acceded that there is still much more to be done and the apex priority is the wholesale digital transformation of Home Affairs to create a new system.

He stated that 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.