Johannesburg – Home Affairs has announced that 186 offices across the country will open on Friday, Youth Day, June 16.
The offices will also open on Saturday, 17 June 2023.
“These 186 are offices capable of processing applications for Smart ID Cards,” the department said.
“They will operate from 08:00 until 13:00 on both days. As of Monday, 12 June 2023, over 471 000 IDs were uncollected at Home Affairs offices nationwide.”
The department said the opening of offices during the Youth Day holiday and on Saturday was in addition to the work young employees have been doing to assist learners to apply for their IDs in honour of the sacrifices of the youth of 1976.
June 16, 1976, is a significant day in South Africas history.
It marks the day of the Soweto uprising that began in Soweto and spread countrywide.
The events that triggered the uprising can be traced back to policies of the apartheid government that resulted in the introduction of the Bantu Education Act of 1953.
The uprising was led by black school children, who began to protest in the streets of Soweto in response to the forced introduction of Afrikaans as the language they would be taught.
The uprising spread to other parts of the country.
To commemorate the heroic acts of the class of 1976, Young officials have been working on Saturdays, the department said.
I am heartened to see young employees leading by example by affording South Africans an opportunity to apply or collect enabling documents that ensure that citizens enjoy the full benefits of being citizens,” said Home Affairs Minister Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi.
“Applying for enabling documents is as important as collecting them.
“I encourage people who applied for their enabling documents two weeks ago or earlier to come and collect their documents.
He said the Department is continuously looking at ways of delivering services in a manner that is convenient for citizens.
The department said following offices will not open as they will be undergoing routine IT maintenance:
- Cala
- Elliotdale
- Engcobo
- Idutywa
- Libode
- Mqanduli
- Mount Aylif
- Ngqeleni
- Qumbu
- Tsolo
- Willowdale
- Burgersdorp
- Sterkspruit
The department said it will communicate its plans to open on a weekend to cater to communities affected by the offices that are unable to open this weekend.
The list of offices that will be open this weekend is available on this link: http://www.dha.gov.za/index.php.
