Gemalto has been awarded the contract to supply ID cards to the South African government.
The cards will include photos and biometric data in line with international trends towards using biometric data as a barrier to fraud.
Ari Bouzbib, Senior Vice President of Government Programs at Gemalto said:
“This new project marks another significant acceleration in the momentum behind eGovernment initiatives on the continent, where Gemalto has already deployed a number of major programs.”
The new identity card roll-out will replace the paper green book system in South Africa and enable the government to offer more electronic services. The Department for Home Affairs will make the new cards available to citizens aged 16 years and over.
Gemalto is a digital security company based in the Netherlands with annual revenues of €2.2 billion and more than 10,000 employees in 43 countries. The company is listed on NYSE Euronext Amsterdam & NYSE Euronext Paris and has 110 patents pending.