The South African Revenue Service (SARS), in collaboration with the Reserve Bank and the Department of Home Affairs, is working on creating a unique digital identity, the tax authority’s head, Edward Kieswetter, announced at a recent event.
“The absence of a digital identity means that in South Africa, I have an ID number, I have a tax number, I have one for registering a company and another for being a hospital patient,” Kieswetter said.
“I appear in the system in many different identities which allows for arbitrage – so I can be employed and get a social grant because the system doesn’t pick me up.”
The revenue authority, SARS, is collaborating with the Department of Home Affairs to issue instant visas, leveraging technology that enables tax assessments in under five seconds, Kieswetter shared.
“The technology exists, so they are working with us to develop a proof of concept for instant visas,” he explained.
The Department of Home Affairs is ‘amending its five-year strategic plan and annual performance plan to embed digital transformation and inter-agency collaboration‘ into its work, its spokesperson Duwayne Esau said.
“It is still early days as this planning process remains a work in progress,” he said in a text message.
In September 2024, Home Affairs Minister, Leon Schreiber, announced that his department has a five-year strategic plan to transition to digital.
Several African countries have also initiated steps to move their citizenry identification systems digital, including their integration with government service provision.
Kenya has already issued about 733,000 of its new generation digital identity cards called Maisha IDs to citizens.
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IDENTITY | Kenya Has Already Issued Over 700, 000 Individuals with New Digital Identity Cards – https://t.co/oEEpwLCl8x— XRPortunity (@XRPortunity) April 18, 2024
According to government officials, the Maisha Card incorporates a distinct personal identifier (UPI) number, known as Maisha Namba, which will serve as the primary and enduring registration and identification reference for cardholders.
To bolster security and reduce the risk of forgery, the Maisha Card incorporates a microprocessor electronic chip with encrypted data. Additionally, it includes features that enable the creation of a virtual ID, known as Maisha Digital ID, for individuals with smartphones.
Nigeria’s National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) is also working on digital identification cards supported by Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigeria Inter-bank Settlement System (NIBSS). The card will be used during payments and social service delivery functions.
🇳🇬IDENTITY | Nigeria’s NIMC to Introduce New Identity Card Integrated with Payments and Other Functions
Responding to public concerns that several cards would be introduced, the NIMC has re-assured Nigerians saying:
“The new National ID Card is a single, convenient, and… pic.twitter.com/a7ds7sgAHm
— BitKE (@BitcoinKE) April 16, 2024
It will also facilitate access to other services including travel, health insurance information, microloans, agriculture, food stamps, transport, and energy subsidies, just to mention a few.
According to the 2024 Digital Identity Fraud in Africa Report by SmileID , the national identification documents of the 3 countries (Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa) experience the highest fraud attempts on the continent.
[TECH] REPORT | Kenyan National ID is the Most Vulnerable to Fraud in Africa, While Payments Remain Most Targeted, Says 2024 SmileID Report: The Kenyan National ID has been identified as the most susceptible.. https://t.co/y6ZFAdOaqo via @BitcoinKE
— Top Kenyan Blogs (@Blogs_Kenya) February 2, 2024
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