By Amy Murphy
Introduction
We are living in a digital age. Technology has fundamentally shaped the way people interact with one another in modern society. Governments around the world have embraced information and communications technology (ICT) to improve public service delivery. Electronic government platforms, or ‘e-governments’ have made interactions between citizens, businesses and governments efficient, convenient and dignified.
However, these words would be the last on the list of any South African’s description of their interaction with Home Affairs. Notably, the new Minister of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA), Dr Leon Schreiber, has made it his mission to root out the rot in one of South Africa’s least favourite governmental departments by embracing technology and innovation. In fact, Minister Schreiber endeavours to be the Minister of an online system.
Home Affairs: fossilised
The proposed overhaul of one of the nation’s most important departments is long overdue. The South African Department of Public Services and Administration implemented an e-government Strategy back in 2001. More recently, the National e-Government Strategy and Roadmap was approved in 2017 in which it was envisioned that the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) would provide ICT to government departments to improve public service delivery.
Despite this seeming adoption of technology and innovation for more than 20 years, the DHA is still fraught with backlogs, system outages and corruption.
In May this year, there was a 92 000 backlog in visa applications that threatened thousands of jobs. However, the new Minister offered some relief for visa applicants by extending the concession for certain pending visa and waiver applications.
Additionally, in January, the DHA experienced a nation-wide outage after SITA experienced technical problems. It is no wonder that the phrase ‘systems offline’ has become synonymous with the department. However, the Minister has said that ‘systems offline’ would no longer be tolerated.
e-Government: lessons from Estonia
Many are sceptical that the new Minister will manage to reinvigorate the fossilised department and bring it into the digital era. However, South Africa does not need to re-invent the wheel. The Republic of Estonia has already established a successful e-government and can provide a roadmap for the transformation of Home Affairs.
Estonia has been recognised as being on the forefront of government digitisation by the European Commission and boasts an e-government platform that is ranked as one of the best in the world.
But how did this nation develop such a robust, convenient and efficient e-government? Nurul Ardhaninggar explains that it is a result of 20 years of commitment to a well-defined digitalisation plan. Technological innovation must be supported by creating laws that foster development, investing in education and improving partnerships between the government and private entities. Estonia prioritised the customer’s experience and ensured that every e-government function was more useful and convenient than its analogue equivalent. This consequently created a digital government infrastructure that was efficient and reliable.
According to the European Union, Estonia’s e-government owes its success to the wide availability of Wi-Fi and internet, that can even be accessed in the most remote regions of the country. Electronic government services such as e-identity cards, e-residency cards for non-nationals, digital healthcare services, online company registrations, and even electronic voting during elections have completely suffused Estonian society. Almost every part of Estonian life uses an e-service.
Thus, a successful e-government system in underpinned by resilient, integrated and innovative public infrastructure.
e-Government in SA
Accordingly, the Managing Director of SITA, Mr Molatlhegi Kgauwe, expressed concerns over South Africa’s potential to achieve its digitalisation goals in the SITA Annual Performance Plan for 2023/24. He notes that the national digital transformation process requires a stable supply of electricity, power and energy. Kgauwe further notes that the government’s inconsistent investment in ICT, and scrappy application of policies and legislation have hampered digitalisation progress.
Considering South Africa’s historical battles with rolling blackouts, water shortages and transport issues to name a few, the government’s ambition to embrace technological innovation is ironic. If the government struggles to supply basic public goods and services, how could it possibly deliver a technologically advanced e-government service?
Progress of digitisation
Despite these challenges, South Africa’s DHA has already made some progress towards digitalising its services. Home Affairs has partnered with banks to roll out smart ID cards and passport services. These private institutions have been proven to be more dynamic and convenient for Home Affairs customers.
BussinessTech reports that the banks contributed to just 3% of the department’s 39 237 total hours of system outages in 2023, and were wholly unaffected by loadshedding. This innovative private-public partnership has improved service delivery and has even greater potential to further cut down on queues and delays.
Additionally, the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) has already developed a National e-Government Portal with 92 digitised services available at www.eservices.gov.za.
‘South Africa Connect’ initiative
According to the DDCT, South Africa Connect is the implementation of the national broadband policy that aims to create an inclusive, digitised and technologically advanced society as envisioned in the National Development Plan. SA Connect plans to connect at least 80% of South African households to the internet over the next three years.
SA Connect consists of two phases: the first phase aimed to connect public facilities in eight rural district municipalities to broadband services. This included schools, health facilities and post offices. Phase two was rolled out in 2023 and aims to connect rural and township households to the internet via community Wi-Fi hotspots.
The government recognises that widespread internet access, akin to the coverage in Estonia, lies at the heart of developing a successful e-government platform. In attempting to build the necessary digital infrastructure, it has devised numerous policies, programs, partnerships and elaborate initiatives. However, these plans are as convoluted as they are costly.
This is especially the case considering that there is a far simpler solution to solve South Africa’s internet connection problems and fast-track our digitisation progress.
Starlink
Starlink is an advanced internet company that uses low-orbit satellite constellations to deliver broadband internet.
Regrettably, Starlink has been unable to obtain a licence from the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA). ICASA requires internet providers to have at least 30% ownership by historically disadvantaged groups. Thanks to Starlink, remote Amazon tribes have better internet connection than South Africans.
Recently, Starlink halted service to South African customers who had cunningly purchased an internet package in neighbouring countries and brought it home as part of the ‘Mobile -Regional’ temporary travel plan. Now, continuous use of this plan outside the country of origin has been snuffed out.
The Democratic Alliance’s (DA) Solly Malatsi was appointed as the Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies. The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) is mandated to lead the nation’s digital transformation with policy and legislation to foster digital inclusion and economic growth. Notably, the DDCT also has oversight of ICASA.
In its 2024 ICT Policy Paper, the DA aims to connect 100% of the South African population to the internet. As widespread internet access forms a vital part an e-government strategy, there is no better company to provide such widespread internet access than Starlink.
In a recent speech presented at the 2024/25 budget vote, Minister Malatsi stated that “[p]olicies need to be developed in a way that keeps us up to date with technological developments, changes in consumer behaviour, as well as learning from international best practice”. Furthermore, the prior DA shadow Minister of the DDCT expressed a strong will to amend the “archaic, irrational and ridiculous” regulations currently depriving South Africans of a Starlink internet connection.
Even Minister Schreiber recently explained that improving the internet infrastructure of DHA offices is an easy way to kickstart the digital transformation of Home Affairs.
Thus, the future of Starlink in our country should be reconsidered if Minister Malatsi is serious about enhancing digital connectivity in South Africa.
Conclusion
The digital transformation of the South African government, especially Home Affairs, cannot happen overnight. Small steps must be taken by our leaders to progressively build the infrastructure that an e-government platform requires.
Thankfully, we do not need to look too far for inspiration to initiate our transformation. The successful e-government platform in the Republic of Estonia offers a valuable blueprint for these ambitious plans. Furthermore, Starlink presents an accessible and effective internet connection solution that can be leveraged to achieve our goals.
We have all the tools required to build a future where every citizen is connected, informed, and empowered. South Africa could finally join the digital revolution embraced by the rest of the world—better late than never.
