South Africa expected to have smart card IDs by 2010
14 February, 2008
category: Government
BuaNews in South Africa reports that smart card IDs are expected to be implemented in that country by the Department of Home Affairs within the next two years. The new smart card is intended to reduce identity document fraud and improve service delivery in the Department.
Concerns over cost of manufacturing the cards and their durability rank high among government officials. But the Department’s Director-General Mavuso Msimang states that the cards “would be a big improvement [over current IDs] because your photograph would be taken and laser printed onto the plastic card.” This project is part of the Home Affairs National Identification System (HANIS).