South Africa to look at tying driving licences to ID cards
The government is considering several changes to driving licence cards in an effort to grapple with a growing backlog, says transport minister Fikile Mbalula.
In a media briefing on Friday (1 April), Mbalula said his department has been given a mandate to introduce a new driving licence card, which would include the possibility of introducing a single card for identification purposes.
This would effectively harmonise the systems of the Department of Home Affairs and the Department of Transport, he said. He confirmed that the Road Traffic Management Corporation was also investigating the possibility of extending the validity of driving licences to 10 years.
Mbalula has previously mooted the possibility of incorporating identification features in South Africa’s licences and in a February media briefing he said the country’s new driving card will feature a number of security enhancements and international recognition – meaning it can be used as a form of identification.
He noted that several other countries have already integrated the driving licence into their identity cards.
Following cabinet approval, the Department of Transport will undergo a procurement process with the new licence card expected to be piloted in October 2023, Mbalula said. Once the physical licence card has been introduced, the government also plans to introduce an electric driving licence which will available through a motorist’s smartphone.
With the introduction of the eDL, the motorist will have an option to apply for a physical card and electronic driver’s licence which will be accessible through a motorist’s mobile phone.
Responding in a recent written parliamentary Q&A, Mbalula said the licence is scheduled to officially launch in the 2024/25 financial year and will formally be known as a mobile or electronic driver licence (eDL).
He added that the project is being spearheaded by the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) which is the trading entity responsible for the production of driving licence cards in South Africa.
The DLCA has previously indicated that the introduction of an electronic licence is now possible due to increased mobile broadband penetration across the country.
Read: Push for driving licence changes in South Africa in the next two weeks
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