Digital driving licence coming to South Africa
In today's Techpoint Digest, we discuss the introduction of a digital driving licence in South Africa, Libya Telecom confirms ongoing network attacks, and Liberia plans to reach out to remote learners.
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Góðan dag,<br />
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Victoria from Techpoint here,<br />
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Here’s what I’ve got for you today:<br />
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Digital driving licence coming to South Africa<br />
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Libya Telecom confirms ongoing network attacks<br />
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Liberia plans to reach learners in remote areas<br />
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Digital driving licence coming to South Africa<br />
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Image source: ITNews<br />
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South Africa is preparing to make two major changes to how driving licences work: extending the validity of licence cards from five years to eight and introducing a digital driving permit to sit alongside the physical card. Government officials say both moves are already in motion, even as final checks continue behind the scenes.<br />
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For drivers, this means fewer renewal trips and less paperwork over time. The shift to an eight-year validity period responds directly to public frustration with frequent renewals, while the digital licence forms part of a broader push to modernise how citizens access government services.<br />
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The digital licence prototype was built in just three months by a small team in the Presidency and showcased in November by Communications Minister Solly Malatsi at the Global Digital Public Infrastructure Summit. Demonstrated live from a smartphone, the system showed how drivers could renew licences online and store a digital permit through the MyMzansi platform.<br />
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MyMzansi sits at the heart of South Africa’s Digital Transformation Roadmap, launched in May 2025. The plan aims to create a single digital identity for citizens, enable data sharing across government, support digital payments, and offer a zero-rated platform where people can access public services even without mobile data.<br />
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While the eight-year licence extension is expected “soon,” the Department of Transport is still reviewing the financial impact, especially on the Driving Licence Card Account, which relies on renewals for revenue. At the same time, Home Affairs is pushing ahead with plans to digitise identity services and eventually phase out the green ID book, signalling that driving licences may just be the ...
