Datacard Group, the world leader in secure ID and card personalisation solutions, today announced that the Government Printing Works in South Africa will be utilising the Datacard MX series card issuance and delivery systems for its new smart ID card programme.
Replacing their current green bar-coded paper ID books, South Africans will be able to receive a smart ID card replacement in initially 27 locations throughout the country, ramping up to more sites in order to issue 38 million smart ID cards over several years. The smart ID cards add many more security features than the previous paper documents, and will feature a dual-interface chip, as well as fingerprint biometrics and biographic data - making it difficult for any forgery. South African citizens will also receive their new cards in five to 10 days, compared to the 47 days it took for the paper documents to be produced and delivered.
The microchip in the smart ID card will also enable the card to be used to access other government services such as electronic health records.
Datacard Group worked with Altech Card Solutions in South Africa to implement this project, proposing a solution and product configuration that meets the South African government's specifications for enhanced security features, as well as the criteria for speed and improved quality.
"We are very happy that the South African government chose Datacard Group's central issuance solutions for their new smart ID card programme," said Jim Runcie, regional vice-president, EMEA region, for Datacard Group. "Transitioning to a card-based system is measurably more secure than the previous paper-based ID documents and offers citizens of South Africa much more functionality and durability."
Every day, Datacard brand solutions personalise and deliver more than 10 million cards, five million smart cards, and issue hundreds of thousands of passports worldwide. The company offers the broadest portfolio of solutions that include best-in-class personalisation, identity management software, supplies and services that have been implemented in more than 400 government programmes in over 100 countries.