Operation Vulindlela's economic reforms hits nine benchmarks

City Press – 15 August 2022

Government is set to announce a new date for the analogue switch-off, after delays caused by legal action.

It says the auction of high-demand spectrum was completed and analogue switch-off has already been completed in five provinces. It’s hoped that migrating households in remaining provinces to a digital signal will be completed soon.

This is one of 26 key reforms that government has introduced as part of Operation Vulindlela.

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said:

To facilitate faster deployment of telecommunications infrastructure, the rapid deployment policy and policy direction have been finalised for approval by Cabinet and we anticipate that a standard draft by-law for wayleave approvals will be adopted for roll-out in municipalities by October 2022.

Operation Vulindlela, which was established in October 2020 to bring about economic reforms, is a joint structure that has reached five milestones this year, according to government.

The joint structure between National Treasury and the presidency focuses on 26 structural reforms in various sectors of the economy, such as transport, energy, telecommunication and water. In its second quarter report, it stated that nine reforms had been completed, while 11 were on track.

Among its achievements mentioned in the latest report is the establishment of the national energy crisis committee, formed to lead the implementation of recently announced measures to reform the electricity sector and bring load shedding to an end. But this seems to be the main achievement in as far as energy reforms are concerned; government is yet to provide additional power to the grid and improve the energy availability factor to over 70%, as envisaged in the reforms.

On Monday, government said it would do away with red tape to enable the quick reform of the electricity sector and add more power to the grid. This included the reduction of the requirement for photovoltaic solar panels to be acquired locally to 35% for bid window 5.

A comprehensive review of the work visa system has been completed, with detailed recommendations to attract skilled immigrants and investment.

The finance minister said the recommendations of the review report would be implemented by March 2023: 

Attracting skills that the economy needs could have the second-highest impact on economic growth after resolving the energy shortfall.

“Significant progress has been made, and is being made, to implement these reforms and to address the urgent challenges that our economy faces.”

Transnet was said to be slowly improving its performance and its financial position. Last month, Transnet group chief executive Portia Derby reported a R5 billion net profit, despite ongoing challenges in its operations.

But Godongwana said: 

There have been significant challenges with both the ports and rail infrastructure, as a result of security issues, inadequate investment in equipment, procurement processes that were tainted by state capture and poor operational performance.

“However, Transnet is steadily improving its performance and has made progress in improving its financial position to enable greater investment. Requests for proposals in respect of private sector participation in rail are due this month for 16 slots made available by Transnet on the Durban-City Deep and Pretoria and East London lines.

“We anticipate the passage of the Economic Regulation of Transport Bill in the coming months, which will establish an independent transport economic regulator and enable properly regulated, nondiscriminatory access to the network beyond these initial slots.”

www.samigration.com

Schengen Visa Slots in South Africa Fully Booked Until October

SchengenVisainfo – 15 August 2022

Travellers from South Africa who were planning to take a trip to Schengen Area countries in August and September will not be able to do so as there are no Schengen visa appointments available.

Most embassies in South Africa have said that they have no appointment slots available until mid-October, meaning that South Africans will not be able to travel to Schengen Area countries anytime soon, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

Embassies in South Africa, as well as those located in other third countries, have been unable to meet the high demand, which has caused many people to change their travel plans.

The demand for a Schengen visa especially increased in the last months as the majority of the EU/Schengen Area countries dropped all of their COVID rules and decided to permit restriction-free entry to all travellers.

However, since the Schengen Area countries have a fixed number of visas that they can issue, they have been unable to meet the high demand, causing dissatisfaction.

Since there are no appointments until mid-October, the travel agencies have emphasised that travellers might choose to visit other destinations rather than wait for an appointment to obtain a Schengen visa.

A Schengen visa permits a person to travel to any Schengen Area country for stays of up to 90 days and is needed by all nationals of third countries that have not yet reached a visa liberalisation agreement with the Schengen states.

There are different types of Schengen visas. However, those planning to enter a Schengen country for tourism purposes need to apply for a tourist Schengen visa.

All South Africans who hold a valid passport, as well as third-country nationals who live in South Africa and who are required to obtain a visa to enter Europe, can apply for a Schengen visa in South Africa.

Those applying for a Schengen visa in South Africa need to submit a visa application form, a South African valid passport or another equivalent document, a photo taken in the last three months, evidence of legal residence in South Africa, a cover letter, round-trip flight itinerary, proof of accommodation, means of subsistence, and health insurance.

Previously, SchengenVisaInfo.com answered the most recently asked question concerning Schengen visas. Travellers asked whether they could enter a Schengen country with a visa that was issued by another country. The answer is yes, as long as the traveller applies at the visa processing centre of the country in which the same will spend more days.

www.samigration.com

Home Affairs tightening rules around passport issuance to avoid fraud

News24 – 12 August 2022

• The Department of Home Affairs is making changes to passport applications and collections to avoid fraud.
• Only the person who applied for a passport can collect it and activate it with fingerprints.  
• The department has also introduced a transit visa for Pakistani and Bangladeshi nationals. 

The Department of Home Affairs says it is tightening rules around passport applications and collections to stop fraud.

On Thursday, Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said fraud linked to South African passports was causing it to lose its integrity. 

"In recent months, the South African passport has been in the news for the wrong reasons. Firstly, on 24 March 2022, in our Krugersdorp office, the nation saw us apprehending a Pakistani national and arresting him with some South African citizens and corrupt Home Affairs officials. All these people were working together to defraud the SA passport.

"Secondly and immediately thereafter, the story of 'Lebogang from Bangladesh' made headlines all over the media, including on social media," he said.  

Motsoaledi added locals implicated in the two corruption cases were out on bail.

"They are on bail; most of them are our citizens. We, unfortunately, can't disown them. They were outright stupid," he said.  

He said fraud involving the passport had consequences for the country. 

Motsoaledi said: 

What people don't realise are the serious consequences and hardships that the country suffers when its passports are defrauded in this manner.

"The main one being that the integrity of the South African passport will be put into question, causing many hardships for South African travellers. It is for this reason that this state of affairs cannot be allowed to continue," he said.  

Motsoaledi added that the department was implementing several steps to secure the passport, saying it was changing the rules around passport issuance. 

Passports can now only be collected from the office they were applied at and only by the person who applied for them.

He said this was so the document could be activated by the applicants' fingerprints. Parents who apply for their children will be the only ones allowed to pick up the passport and activate them with their fingerprints.  

"We must strongly warn that any passport collected using whatever method other than the ones announced today will not be activated and hence will be of no use to the holder.

"We are aware that this will inconvenience some frequent travellers and some busy people who might not have time, but we are appealing that everybody has to be prepared to readily pay this price for the integrity of our passports," he said. 

Motsoaledi added the department would not be announcing the internal steps it was taking so as not to alert corrupt officials, saying it would be making an announcement related to the technology soon.

Transit visas 

The minister said because of fraud and corruption linked to Pakistani and Bangladeshi travellers' transit through South Africa, the department would enforce a transit visa on them.  

"The decision was informed by recent incidents wherein passengers from the two countries were caught attempting to enter into South Africa illegally by sneaking in through fire hydrant passages at the airport while on the way to the transit lounge to continue to other countries.   

"In so doing, they try to evade immigration and other law enforcement officers at the port of entry, thus undermining the security and sovereignty of the state," he said. 

Motsoaledi added transit visas were a way "to stop people from undermining our systems".

www.samigration.com

Home Affairs is hiring 10,000 unemployed graduates to digitise 350 million paper records

Business Insider SA – 12 August 2022

• South Africa's department of home affairs has more than 350 million civic paper records detailing births, marriages, deaths, and amendments dating back to 1895.
• Sifting through these paper documents is a major headache for both the department and South Africans.
• That's why the department of home affairs is hiring 10,000 unemployed youth graduates to digitise these paper documents.
• Job adverts for the first intake of recruits are due to be published on Friday, with the project expected to last for three years.
• Recruits can earn between R5,000, for entry-level positions, to R14,250 for manager-level positions.

South Africa's department of home affairs will recruit 10,000 unemployed youth graduates to digitise more than 350 million civic paper records over the next three years, according to Minister Aaron Motsoaledi.

The department of home affairs is clogged by more than 350 million civic paper records detailing births, marriages, deaths, and amendments dating back to 1895. The lack of digital copies of these records stifles home affairs' already overburdened processes, causing frustrating delays for South African applicants.

"Quite often, South Africans complain bitterly about the delays they experience when they apply for unabridged birth certificates, unabridged marriage certificates, amendments, and rectification of their biographic details," said Motsoaledi during a media briefing on Thursday morning.

"This is because to finalise all these applications, Home Affairs officials have to manually search for original documents among these 350 million manual records. Obviously, such a tedious process will take a long time, which people may not be aware of. This leads to frustration when people have to make several visits to Home Affairs."

To answer this problem, the department of home affairs has committed to hiring 10,000 unemployed youth graduates who will be tasked with digitising these paper documents. These recruits should be qualified in Information Technology – specifically, document, information, and records management – obtained from institutions of higher learning.

The first phase of the recruitment process will begin in August, said Motsoaledi, with adverts for the intake of 2,000 unemployed youth graduates available on Friday. This first group of recruits will "assume duty" on 1 November 2022.

The department will recruit a further 4,000 unemployed youth graduates in October and the remaining 4,000 in December.

"This cohort will be required to sign a three-year contract linked to the duration of the project," said Motsoaledi, noting that the project would run until October 2025.

"Successful youth will be paid a stipend ranging from R5,000 for entry-level positions to R9,500 for technical support level positions, and R14,250 for manager-level positions."

Candidates will be able to apply for work within the digitisation project through the department of home affairs and department of employment and labour websites.

"Those that don't have access to the internet can visit their closest labour centre of the department of employment and labour," said Motsoaledi.

"In this month of women, and to honour the heroines of the 1956 march to the Union Buildings, we wish to announce that 60% of the intake will be of young women and only 40% will be young men."

Training will also be offered to new recruits relevant to the job for which they are contracted to perform.

"Once the records are digitised, Home Affairs officials will have access to them at a click of a button and would be able to finalise the applications instantly," added Motsoaledi.

www.samigration.com

Zim Minister says Harare ready to welcome its citizens as permits expire in SA

IOL – 12 Aug  2022

Pretoria - Zimbabwe’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Frederick Shava, said the government led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa is ready to welcome back its citizens who have lived in South Africa under the Zimbabwe Exemption Permits (ZEP).

“The Zimbabwe Exemption Permit will expire at the end of this year. Its expiry is naturally causing much anxiety to the holders of this permit,” Shava said in his opening remarks while co-chairing the mid-term review of the Bi-National Commission (BNC) with International Relations and Cooperation Minister Naledi Pandor.

“Our two governments must work closely in the implementation of this decision. We are ready to receive our nationals back home,” he said.

Among several senior officials from the two nations, the high-level meeting was also attended by Ambassador of South Africa to Zimbabwe, Thizwilondi Rejoice Mabudafhasi, and Ambassador of Zimbabwe to South Africa, David Hamadziripi.

Numerous Zimbabweans living in South Africa are in limbo, after the South African government announced that it would not be extending the Zimbabwe Exemption Permits (ZEP), which ended on December 31, 2021.

The almost 200 000 permit-holders were given a 12-months grace period to regularise their stay with another category of permit.

Pandor told Shava that Pretoria is grateful for the supportive role played by Zimbabwe in arresting the scourge of illegal migration.

“Dear Minister (Shava), I’m sure you are aware that effective management of immigration has been an ongoing challenge for our government.

“We’ve recently established a border management agency and we hope it will vastly reduce illegal migration and improve efficiency. I must thank you and your government for the support you have given us in this endeavour,” she said.

Pandor said the review meeting gives the two neighbouring countries an opportunity to “reboot and reset our programmes, to better respond to the challenges that have emanated” from the Covid-19 pandemic.

“I am pleased to recall that despite the constraints of the pandemic, total trade between South Africa increased from a quantum of R38billion in 2020 to R47.5bn in 2021. I trust that our delegations will align our planning to enhance this positive development and I note in the figures that the surplus lies with South Africa, and we would like to see greater benefit to Zimbabwe’s economic sectors as well.

“Of course, our cooperation and partnership is not only limited to bilateral relations. We also share common values on regional, continental and global governance issues of mutual interest,” she said.

Pandor also expressed gratitude to Zimbabwe for the support given to South Africa when it served on the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.

Shava, a seasoned diplomat, was appointed by Mnangagwa to head the Ministry of Foreign Affairs last year, following the death of the country’s Foreign Affairs Minister Sibusiso Moyo

www.samigration.com