IDEMIA Identity and Security South Africa will produce SA’s new smart driver’s licence cards, the Department of Transport (DOT) has announced in a statement.
The firm is a subsidiary of French multinational technology company IDEMIA.
In June, the department revealed it had received a total of five bids. These were received from Ren-form Corporate Print Media, NEC XON, Muehlbauer ID Services, Gemalto Altron Fintech Southern Africa, and IDEMIA Identity and Security SA.
In a statement, the DOT says it selected the IDEMIA subsidiary as the preferred bidder to produce the new cards, noting the appointment was approved on 8 August.
IDEMIA is expected to enter into a service level agreement with the department before starting to work on the infrastructure and systems.
The department adds that more information on timeframes will be made available to the public once the service agreement has been signed.
“The new licence card will incorporate new security features aimed at eliminating the ever-increasing risks of fraudulent and counterfeit driving licences,” says the DOT.
“Considering the cost drivers of producing the driving licence, and the risk of fraud and corruption, the new driving licence will continue to be manufactured centrally.”
IDEMIA has previously been awarded lucrative government contracts by the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) and Airports Company South Africa (ACSA).
It was tasked with implementing the DHA’s Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS).
ABIS was announced in December 2017, with the first phase supposed to be up and running after 12 months. It forms part of the DHA’s move towards a digital identification system and is intended to replace the Home Affairs National Identity System, in an effort to root out ID and passport fraud.
However, the project has faced controversy over the years, including a dodgy R400 million tender involving former service provider EOH. The DHA ceded the contract to IDEMIA as of 31 March 2021, after EOH decided to exit all government contracts.
The French firm was also contracted to implement biometric and facial recognition technologies for ACSA, as well as e-gate systems for regulating passenger movement at airports.
Last month, ACSA terminated the multimillion-rand contract, which had become embroiled in controversy after claims surfaced that IDEMIA secured the four-year deal with the help of insiders, side-lining its empowerment partner, InfoVerge, in the process.
The cancellation came after ACSA suspended its IT head on 8 August, acknowledging there is prima facie evidence of wrongdoing in relation to the project.
Meanwhile, the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) says there are “big red flags” regarding IDEMIA being the DOT’s preferred bidder for the contract.
“Outa has been investigating this tender process for a while now, and we will be writing to minister of transport Barbara Creecy,” the organisation wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
“The public deserves full transparency on this matter, and we would like her to instruct the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) or the Road Traffic Management Corporation − or whoever is behind this − to hold off on signing any agreement with IDEMIA.”
Under pressure
Over the years, government has had challenges with multiple breakdowns of its single printing machine for driving licences, leading to a huge backlog in the issuing of the documents. The machine was introduced in 1998.
Last year, the machine broke down due to a technical problem that required a part to be replaced by the original manufacturer overseas, leaving drivers in limbo.
To fight counterfeiting, government decided to introduce a new smart driving licence with security features such as biometric data, holograms and watermarks.
On 30 August 2022, the sixth administration Cabinet approved a proposal by the department to produce a new driving licence card for the country.
The DOT embarked on a process to find a service provider with a tender advertisement in the government tender portal on 5 April 2023, which closed on 5 May 2023.
It received responses from five bidders, which it says were then subjected to a thorough and transparent process of evaluation and adjudication by the bidding committee.
“It was also subjected to a probity/audit process − the probity conclusion being that all the processes were in compliance with prescribed legislation and policies.”
With the new process, the DLCA – a trading entity operating under the DOT – should be able to produce a card within five working days, nine days faster than the current printer, the department previously stated.
According to the DOT, the new card will be valid for eight years, instead of the current five. However, it notes that current cards will continue to be recognised as valid until 31 March 2029.
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