South Africa’s Driver’s Licence Tender and Renewal Crisis
Chinedu Bruce
Monday, March 24, 2025
South Africa is facing a serious problem with its driver’s licence renewal system. The only machine used to print driving licence cards is very old (26 years) and has broken down many times (159 breakdowns). Since January 2025, the machine stopped working again, and now there is a big backlog of licence cards waiting to be printed.
The Tender Controversy
In 2024, the Department of Transport decided to buy new machines to solve this problem. They awarded a R500 million tender (contract) to a French company called Idemia to supply three new card printing machines. These machines would be faster, have better security features, and could be repaired inside South Africa (unlike the current one, which must be fixed overseas).
But in September 2024, a group called OUTA (Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse) raised concerns. They said there were irregularities (mistakes and unfair actions) in the tender process. Minister Barbara Creecy then asked the Auditor-General to investigate.
What Did the Auditor-General Find?
The Auditor-General found that:
The tender process was not followed properly.
There were problems with how the bids were scored and evaluated.
The budget sent to Cabinet was not correct.
The total cost of the deal might reach R900 million, but the budget approved was only R490 million.
Some of the information used was outdated.
Legal Action and Risks
In March 2025, Minister Creecy went to court to stop the tender because of these problems. However, legal advisors in the Department of Transport warned that cancelling the tender could cause long delays in court, possibly for many years. This would delay the new machines and worsen the backlog even more.
OUTA’s View
OUTA is worried about:
Corruption in the tender process
Delays in licence renewals
Waste of taxpayer money They want the government to be transparent and make sure everything is done fairly and by the rules.
Summary
South Africa’s only licence printing machine is old and often broken.
A tender to get new machines was given to a French company (Idemia).
OUTA raised corruption and mismanagement concerns.
Auditor-General confirmed there were serious problems in the tender process.
The Transport Minister went to court to block the deal.
Lawyers warn stopping the tender could cause even more delays.
There is now a legal battle, a printing crisis, and a growing licence backlog.
