South African motorists can expect new driver’s license cards to be piloted from November next year until March 2024.
The news was delivered by Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula during a media briefing in which he stated that the government had approved the decision to scrap the old driver’s license in favour of a new and improved version, reports EWN.
The “facelift” will include new security features and is set to look similar to the smart IDs which was launched by the Home Affairs Department. The secure design is reportedly based on international best practices and comes after intense pressure for the government to release cards with a 10-year validity period.
According to IOL, AfriForum had gone so far as to threaten to take the government to court over the matter.
“I am pleased to announce that Cabinet has approved the replacement of the current driving licence card with a new card with more secure design features and will comply with the international driving licence standard.
“The current driving licence card was introduced in 1998 and the production equipment was procured in the same year. The technology has become obsolete,” Mbalula said.
The government received backlash after it was found that the only machine which printed South African driver’s license cards was broken and had been shipped to Germany for repairs.
Mbalula indicated that equipment currently used to print driver’s license cards would be decommissioned on 1 April 2024.
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Picture: SA 411