Home affairs on course to digitise records

Source: ITWeb, 23/05/2017

The Department of Home Affairs (DHA) will step up the digitization of
records using the earmarked R10 million per annum received from
National Treasury. This is the word from minister Hlengiwe Mkhize
during a presentation of the DHAs budget vote in Parliament.


According to Mkhize among the factors impacting proficient provision
of public services has been a lack of efficient records management
which is why the department has prioritized digitization of
records.


Last year the DHA introduced its digitisation project through a
partnership with Statistic SA. At the time the department said it
planned to digitise 286 million records of which 90% were still in
paper format.


Most of these are records of birth marriages deaths ID applications
naturalisation and permitting and date back to the late 1800s as
pointed out by the department.


The aim of the project is to make records more easily accessible and
modernise the department using the most modern innovative technology
and management approaches to fulfill its mandate.


The department said as part of this digitisation process it will
prioritise birth certificates of which there are 110 million records
by digitising 5.8 million birth records a year.


It stated records will be indexed by ID number for easy retrieval and
will be able to be accessed immediately irrespective of office
location. Electronic records can be viewed and accessed by more than
one person simultaneously eliminating the reliance on individuals for
knowledge as the document is accessible by multiple staff.


Commenting on the departments digitisation project Mkhize stated SA
has the capacity to modernise.


Using technology as an enabler we transformed our office in Marabastad
which was notorious for being overcrowded into the world class Desmond
Tutu Refugee Reception Centre launched by president JG Zuma early this
year. It is fitting that we named the centre after an icon of human
rights.


The centre is now conducive for DHA officials to improve services as a
result of cutting-edge technologies installed. Overcrowding has
drastically decreased and efficiency improved.