The Department of Home Affairs has deported more than 51,000 irregular migrants since the change in office just over a year ago — a figure that exceeds the total deportations of the previous five years combined.
For a department long seen as dysfunctional, the turnaround is striking. But Minister Leon Schreiber says deportations are only one piece of the puzzle. To secure South Africa’s borders, he argues, the state must push through wholesale reform driven by technology.
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The Scale of the Problem
South Africa does not know the exact number of undocumented migrants inside its borders. Stats SA estimated 2.4 million international migrants lived in the country in 2022, with many unregistered. This has placed visible strain on schools, hospitals, and housing programmes, especially in provinces like Gauteng.
“Undocumented migration is now a national problem across the political spectrum,” Schreiber told a PSG Think Big presentation. “The most reasonable investment we can make is to secure border control.”
Leaky Borders and the Cost of Inaction
For decades, South Africa’s borders have been easy to breach. Thirty years of underinvestment and a lack of coordination left holes that traffickers, smugglers, and undocumented migrants exploited. Until recently, border control functions sat across seven different departments and agencies, leading to duplication and weak accountability.
The creation of the Border Management Authority (BMA) consolidated oversight into a single entity. But Schreiber believes the true breakthrough lies in technology.
“No magic wand will eliminate the problem,” he said. “Only systematic reform using technology like drones, biometrics, and fraud-proof ID verification will bring the border problem under some type of control.”
Technology as a Game-Changer
The most significant shift has been the rollout of smart IDs and biometric verification. For decades, the green ID book — still used by nearly 18 million South Africans — enabled fraud. Criminals replaced photos or altered details to steal identities, at huge cost to the state.
By migrating both citizens and foreign nationals to secure smart IDs backed by biometric data, Home Affairs has made fraud far harder. These measures helped authorities increase the detection and prevention of illegal crossings by 215% in the past year.
“The entry and exit into South Africa must be automated and linked to biometrics,” Schreiber said. “That is how we close off corruption opportunities and secure our borders.”
Clearing the Visa Backlog
The department also tackled another major challenge: the visa backlog. At its peak, Home Affairs sat with 306,000 outstanding applications.
“When I arrived, we had only 40% of the staff required. People were drowning in the work,” Schreiber recalled.
By automating large parts of the system, the department cleared the backlog and improved turnaround times for both South Africans and foreign nationals.
Driving Tourism and Economic Growth
Schreiber wants Home Affairs to be more than a gatekeeper; he sees it as an economic enabler.
A key reform is the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA), which allows tourists to apply and verify their identities online instead of visiting embassies. The shift already attracted 27,000 additional visitors from India and China, giving tourism and business a welcome boost.
“South Africa has lost opportunities in the film, sport, and music sectors because of our outdated visa system,” Schreiber admitted. “Now we’re fixing that.”
Banks as Service Points
In another innovation, Home Affairs partnered with more than 1,000 bank branches equipped with fingerprint scanners and cameras. These branches now handle applications for IDs, passports, and other documents, cutting waiting times and making services more accessible.
The department also revamped its online verification system. Where up to 50% of attempts once failed, failure rates now sit below 1%. The service now costs R10 per verification — up from just a few cents — making it more sustainable.
Reform as a Template
Schreiber believes the Home Affairs turnaround could serve as a template for wider state reform.
“Reform is happening under the GNU in ways nobody anticipated,” he said. “Home Affairs is not just about papers — it’s a national security function and an economic enabler.”
Why It Matters for Gauteng
For Gauteng, South Africa’s economic hub and the province that absorbs the largest share of migrants, these reforms matter directly. Schools, hospitals, and housing projects often absorb the heaviest pressure from undocumented migration. Stronger border controls, streamlined systems, and efficient verification could ease that strain and create space for growth.
Civil society, however, cautions that reforms must balance security with dignity. Deportations should always follow lawful processes and uphold humane treatment of migrants.
Keeping the Momentum
The deportation of 51,000 undocumented migrants in just over a year signals that Home Affairs is changing course. But deportations are not enough. The real story lies in the technology-driven reforms that cleared backlogs, cut fraud, boosted tourism, and strengthened border security.
For South Africa — and Gauteng in particular — the task now is to sustain this momentum. Home Affairs must continue modernising, while other government departments should replicate the same reform mindset.
Gauteng residents have seen how systemic reform can work when there is political will. The next challenge is ensuring that these innovations spread across the state, creating a government that is efficient, accountable, and ready to deliver.
