By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber highlighted a series of major achievements during his 2025 Budget Vote speech delivered in Parliament on Thursday.
Schreiber outlined reforms that are setting the foundation for a more secure, efficient, and citizen-focused Home Affairs system.
The department has cleared a backlog of over 306 000 visa applications dating back more than a decade.
“We produced and delivered just under 3.6 million Smart IDs, surpassing the previous annual record by nearly half a million.
“We deployed advanced drone and body camera technology at the border for the first time, leading to an increase of up to 215% in the detection and prevention of attempted illegal border crossings.
“We launched Operation New Broom as part of intensified operations to restore the rule of law, leading to over 46 000 deportations — the highest figure in more than five years and more than countries like France and Germany combined,” the Minister said.
Schreiber said the department launched the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme to boost tourism from the major source markets of China and India where South Africa has underperformed for years.
“We enabled over 1.4 million naturalised citizens and permanent residents to obtain secure Smart IDs for the first time. We activated the Immigration Advisory Board for the first time in a decade by appointing a diverse group of seasoned experts to help shape better policies,” Schreiber said.
The Minister reaffirmed his department’s zero tolerance for corruption, revealing that 37 corrupt officials have been dismissed. Additionally, he launched the Border Management and Immigration Anti-Corruption Forum, bringing together agencies like the Special Investigating Unit, Hawks, National Prosecuting Authority, and other law enforcement entities. Their collaborative work has already secured eight convictions, with sentences ranging from four to 18 years in prison.
Schreiber also shared progress on digital transformation, confirming the successful development of a working prototype for the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) system. This system will fully digitalise visa processing, removing bottlenecks and corruption-prone manual systems.