White Paper on Citizenship, Immigration and Refugee Protection; Update on Operation Vulindlela; with Ministry

Meeting report

The Chairperson stated that the briefing would be on two critical matters extensively dealt with in the Sixth Administration. He understood that the work done by the Department on the White Paper was going through the executive processes, including Cabinet approval and other outstanding issues required to develop a Bill that must be brought to Parliament for public and stakeholder engagement. He viewed it as an important piece of legislation which Parliament should consider. Additionally, the Committee would be briefed on Operation Vulindlela and the Department's work as a collective, led by the former Director-General (DG). He had listened carefully to the responses of the Minister and Deputy Minister to the security cluster about the intention to bring the Bill before Parliament in 2027. He asked for guidance from the Ministry on some of the issues that the Department must consider given the urgency and the challenges facing the country, including security issues and the economic impact that the delay of the Bill might have. The timeframe is important, and the process might need to be fast-tracked. The Vulindlela matter might need to go through the same process. The Committee had more clarity on the process of developing a Bill. It would not delay the Department's work but highlight issues that the Committee and Department would be confronted with. The Committee had interacted with the former Minister and his team regarding the declaration of the White Paper. It was satisfied that Cabinet is now considering the matter, particularly on the agreement about the timeframe and period. He proposed that the Department deal with both issues at once. Deliberations on the public hearings on the Marriage Bill would follow after the questions and answers session. He invited the Minister to introduce the two presentations.

Minister’s Opening Remarks
Dr Leon Schreiber, Minister of Home Affairs, welcomed the Deputy Minister and the Department delegation. He expressed his gratitude to the Committee for scheduling both topics on the same day because it would show the interplay between the two processes operating in the same space. The space presents a high-level view of the immigration system, citizenship and refugee status as documented in the White Paper. The Bill went to Cabinet in April 2024. The Cabinet meeting minutes provided pointers that the Department would use as input to proceed with the Bill. The input on Operation Vulindlela provided an opportunity to supplement some of the work by ensuring that the legal changes were aligned with the President's and the Administration's proposals. He cautioned against a misalignment between what the Presidency proposed in modernising Home Affairs and reframing the system and the White Paper. The matter should be handled correctly from the start. A legal opinion on the White Paper was commissioned to ensure compliance with the injunction on the Statement of Intent and the Constitution. This became important when dealing with international matters. The primary goal is to comply with the South African Constitution. The Department would make sure that the work of the Seventh Administration and Operation Vulindlela were all commissioned and aligned to deliver the best product. He emphasised the enormous scope of the task, comparing it to the major reforms in health and education. It was critical to follow the correct procedures to avoid the Bill being rejected in court because it would be the worst outcome. Elements of Operation Vulindlela would require regulatory as well as legislative changes. The Department has been working with speed to give effect to the cost-cutting measures in government and to bring views from different departments, e.g., unlocking skills in tourism to create jobs and economic growth, which is the key priority of this Administration. The Trusted Tour Operator (TTO) scheme has the potential to unlock the Chinese and Indian markets. Australia receives about 1.4 million Chinese tourists annually compared to 93 000 in South Africa. The bottlenecks in South Africa relate to granular details about simultaneously interpreting documents and processing applications for large groups of tourists. The TTO scheme would vet the tour operator for the ability to process group applications more effectively. He believed that the scheme would boost the numbers in a short period if it were implemented. This was an example of real opportunities that Operation Vulindlela could unlock in the medium term and should be enabled in the legislation. He called on the DG to proceed with the presentation.

The Chairperson requested the Committee Secretary to handle the logistics of participants who needed a link to the meeting.

White Paper on Citizenship, Immigration and Refugee Protection
Mr Tommy Makhode, DG, DHA, introduced the officials accompanying him. The presentation would highlight the reforms underway and the priorities the President was leading, including digital transformation. The intergovernmental team has been working on digital transformation issues, which the Department must consider. The presentation outlined the milestones traversed over some time on the White Paper and the three priorities that had been identified. Regarding Operation Vulindlela, he advised that seven of the eight recommendations had been implemented. The outstanding matter of technology is being finalised. The President spoke about tourism reforms in his State of the Nation Address (SONA). A team was appointed to review what the Minister had mentioned earlier. The team had been working on various options, and the Department would report the progress at a future Committee meeting.

Mr Thulani Mavuso, DDG: Institutional Planning and Support, DHA, summarised the process that the Department followed in developing the White Paper, including key policy and legislative reforms underway, recommendations, proposals for further strengthening the White Paper and consideration of Operations Vulindlela and Genesis recommendations. He outlined the key policy positions in the White Paper related to citizenship, immigration, and refugee protection. The Department had identified aspects that required strengthening and improvement in line with GNU priorities, the Medium-term Development Plan, and the Operation Vulindlela and Genesis reports. The Supplementary Policy Paper is being developed and will be submitted to the Minister for approval by 31 March 2025. The Annual Performance Plan (APP) tabled before the Committee included the target to submit the Bill in the 2024/25 financial for approval. Given the supplementary work that would have to be incorporated into the White Paper before the end of October 2024, the target needs to be reviewed.

Operation Vulindlela recommendations
Mr Yusuf Simons, Western Cape Provincial Manager, DHA, said there is a natural flow from the White Paper to the Operation Vulindlela report.  He summarised the work done for the past year in Phase 1 and the TTO scheme in Phase 2. In his SONA, the President announced a review of the visa regime to make it easier for foreigners to travel to South Africa for tourism, business and work. The review is part of the five objectives of Operation Vulindlela, focusing on attracting skills and growth in the tourism sector. Furthermore, it aims to improve the efficiency of visas and permits issued by both the Department and the applicants. The Operation Vulindlela report, which includes eight recommendations, was handed to the Department in January 2023. The dedicated project team had implemented seven of the eight recommendations. The outstanding recommendation involved the modernisation of the IT system and the introduction of automation. Two key interventions proposed by the review are the Trusted Employer Scheme (TES) and the Points-Based System (PBS). The TES allows employers to be vetted and approved in advance, reducing the visa application administrative burden. The PBS determines the eligibility for a work visa based on a scoring system that includes factors such as education level, professional field, wealth and language. The TES was gazetted on 11 October 2023, with 20 November 2023 as the closing date. A total of 108 applications had been received by the closing date. Changes to the PBS resulted in an amendment of the Immigration Regulations published on 20 May 2024.

Discussion
The Chairperson thanked the DG and his team for the detailed briefings. He invited Members to comment on the presentation.

Mr M Roos (DA) welcomed the implementation of Operation Vulindlela, which covers three different pieces of legislation, i.e. the Citizens, Immigration, and Refugees Acts, rolled into one. He was happy about the Supplementary Paper because it would allow GNU evidence-based policy-making to justify some recommendations. The big criticism was the missed opportunity of job creation. The legislation would not necessarily cover all the challenges because some process changes were needed. Challenges such as persons overwhelming the health sector and undocumented foreigners who claim asylum but spend ten years in the system after initially being rejected. The courts protect foreigners by allowing them to take advantage of the services. Money was made available to get the backlog under control, which is process-related, instead of changing South Africa’s participation in international law. Most of the shortcomings could be addressed with system modernisation because it requires basic process changes. He enquired about the timeframe for obtaining a SAQA-accredited qualification. He found it interesting that the banks were offering to hire students to adjudicate visa applications, considering that in the last term, the Minister was planning to hire lawyers to deal with the backlog. He sought clarity about training to empower the internal capacity of the Department. The problem lies with an application that was initially incorrectly adjudicated and needs to go through an appeals process. He asked if capacitation at the banks was also happening at the Department to minimise the number of incorrect rejections. He was pleased to hear that Operation Vulindlela was almost ready to be implemented because it would massively contribute to the economy and job creation.

Mr J Ngubane (MK) said the Department was trying to look good on paper but was very bad in practice. Before embarking on the PBS or the TES, he enquired about developing local skills. He noted in the presentation that the critical skills list was last updated in 2014. He pointed to a disjuncture with the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), which publishes the critical skills list annually. He questioned the lack of integration with the DHET to ensure that the critical skills list of the DHA is regularly updated. The Border Management Authority (BMA) must be capacitated to counter the porous borders before changing the visa regime. The second presentation referred to integration with the Department of Labour. He argued that the DHET is a critical part of the value chain and should be engaged. The DHET has an influx of students that the DHA is not hiring. Students with qualifications are unemployed, but the government is looking abroad for skills. In addition to India and China, the Department should consider Africa as another market for attracting skills. He drew attention to a huge Chinese-owned construction house in Midrand that does not use local skills. China and India are bringing their construction workers because the labour laws in the country are weak and must be reviewed. Business owners have exploited the loopholes by employing more Zimbabweans and foreigners instead of South Africans. For the past 30 years, the policies on paper appeared good, but implementation has failed.

Ms S Khojane (PA) appreciated the knowledge sharing through the presentations. The policy position on the White Paper is reported to have enjoyed widespread support by the public. She asked for an indication of the aspects the public supported widely and whether the issues that were not supported had been reviewed. South Africans need to know that they are not being considered last when looking for skilled people, nor is the scheme meant to exclude foreigners. She questioned the idea that someone from outside the country was making more of an impact than local skilled people. To avoid eroding public trust, the government should ensure inclusivity and not upset citizens. To clarify the vagueness of the statement that ‘asylum seekers should show good cause for unlawful entry’, she asked for an explanation of good cause and who the information would be presented to. She sought clarity on how a DHA official would not breach the process and how it would work in real-time when the system is automated. She asked why FirstRand Bank and Deloitte were chosen as the two corporates to collaborate with to increase the capacity at the DHA. She enquired about the motivation for introducing new visa categories for remote workers and if the PBS has a limit. She wanted to know if the 108 TES applications received were adequate or if the Department expected more applications. The second round of TES would be gazetted by the end of October 2024. She asked if this was enough time to allow for public comment.

Mr T Mogale (EFF) sought clarity about the general work visa category and who was granted this visa. The last update of the critical skills list was done in 2014. He noted the list included a call centre manager as a critical skill. He requested a breakdown of the critical skills that had been approved as part of clearing the backlog in critical skills visas. The perception is that critical skills include engineering and scientific skills. He understood that the tourism sector in Cape Town is advocating for the digital nomad visa. He enquired about the social and economic impact of the specific visa. There have been complaints that the digital nomads were increasing rental accommodation prices and living costs in Cape Town. The White Paper had ignited a lot of debate in the public domain. The Committee should not take a position that was going to be interpreted by fellow Africans as an anti-immigration posture. The perception exists that South Africa is seeking to insulate itself from the rest of the continent through these stringent measures to stem the flow of African migrants. He enquired about the available path to citizenship for children of illegal immigrants who had been in the country for most of their lives and had gone through the education system up to the university level. He wanted to know if the policy would address this particular matter. He did not want a repeat of the group of Afghanistan people who were brought to this country by the CIA via Zimbabwe. South Africa has relations with Palestine, which is thousands of kilometres from here and has recently welcomed Palestine refugees. He wanted to understand how the One Stop Border Post principle is going to be applied or if Palestine refugees would be referred to neighbouring countries such as Egypt or Morocco.

Ms M Modise-Mpya (ANC) said matters of immigration management and border control were of serious concern to many South Africans. Therefore, she fully supported the major policy reforms on immigration, forming the basis for the White Paper developed in the previous term. The asylum regime and foreign nationals acquiring permanent residency, visas or citizenship might have been done irregularly because of the many weaknesses in the immigration laws. Weak laws have allowed criminal syndicates and human traffickers to take advantage of our refugee and immigration systems. She found it concerning that timeframes to expedite the processing of the White Paper had not been indicated. She appreciated the implementation of the Operation Vulindlela recommendations. She asked the Department to elaborate on the improvements made since the recommendations were implemented. The Minister mentioned thorough consultation and commissioning a legal opinion on the White Paper. She wanted to understand what necessitated the legal opinion and further consultation, given that the public had already expressed concerns about the immigration laws. Seeking scarce skills should not compromise the security of the country. Undocumented foreigners are allowed to access the courts and have successfully obtained permission to stay in the country, contributing to the country's economic challenges. Human rights representatives have been exploiting the weaknesses in the immigration system. She enquired about the monitoring mechanisms to check whether start-up visas would benefit the country's economy. She wanted to know if there were timeframes or limitations for start-up visas to change the conditions if the businesses were not creating jobs. She asked the Department to ensure that all the concerns expressed by South Africans are being considered in finalising the White Paper.

Rev K Meshoe (ACDP) noted that the length of stay would no longer be considered when asylum seekers apply for citizenship. He wanted to know how long it takes to finalise a citizenship application. He sought clarity on the difference between illegal entry and showing good cause for unlawful entry to the country. He understood that requiring a police clearance certificate came with challenges but was unsure that doing away with the requirement could be justified given the problems with criminals outside the country. Many South Africans feel that their concerns are not being taken seriously. People have expressed unhappiness about porous borders that had not been addressed in the White Paper. He reported six cases that the police could not solve because of the involvement of foreigners that could not be traced. He asked the Minister to comment on the likelihood of implementing stricter measures to address the complaints about porous borders. Many public hospitals have more foreign doctors who cannot speak the local language, and local doctors have been protesting about the lack of jobs. The communication barrier between foreign doctors and patients is not helpful to the patients. He appealed to the Minister to be sensitive when allowing some industries to be occupied by foreign nationals when we have competent, skilled people in the country. He echoed the sentiment that the country's laws are good on paper but poor on implementation. He was hopeful that the new Minister and the GNU would hear the outcry from the people and the Department would communicate the measures to address their complaints.

Mr M Hala (ANC) noted that the officials from the Department were all men and said the situation should be corrected. He asked if it would be possible to round up all foreigners without scarce skills and return them to their countries. Citizens are concerned about the free-for-all situation in the country. For example, some areas are restricted to only Nigerians or Somalians. He questioned the status of these people as permanent residents. He was concerned that his Madiba clan name would vanish in twenty years because the daughters and sisters of the clan were getting married to people from outside the country. People would hold the government accountable for allowing the country to deteriorate to this extent.

Mr Y Tetyana (EFF) questioned whether the scares skills list has ever been reviewed since 1994. It was the responsibility of the Committee to review issues that appeared abnormal. He had visited a friend at the
Goodwood prison, where he was introduced to a foreign national who had committed a crime in Khayelitsha. He was informed that person, along with many other foreign national inmates, had not been to court because the police could not trace his identity. He questioned why foreign nationals who had not been found guilty of a crime are being allowed to feed off the system. He found it worrisome that the role of the DHA is absent in providing fingerprints of foreign nationals. People must be in prison for the right reasons. He believed that the lack of standards created the problems at the DHA. He noted that different towns have different standards for different offices. He proposed that oversight visits to the DHA offices should be unannounced. It was reported that there were no long queues in East London, but he demonstrated through pictures that this was not the case. He called on the minister and his team to immediately address the issues highlighted in this meeting, including maths and science on the scarce skills list. He stated that most of the students with maths and science whom he encountered in the Free State were from Ghana. Some of them had moved from the Eastern Cape for better conditions. The Border Management Authority (BMA) was established over a year ago but has not been assessed. Some of the guards have been blue lighting as police officers on the streets in the area where he comes from. He apologised for arriving late.

Ms B Machi (IFP) thanked the Minister and his team for the comprehensive presentations. She sensed that the Minister could hear the cry of South Africans living in fear within their own country. Members were sent by their communities to raise the issue of foreigners taking their jobs. She pleaded with the Minister and his team to address the complaints of South Africans within the following year.

Mr Mogale drew attention to the number of South African citizens born to South African parents who do not have documentation to prove citizenship because the DNA test cost R4 700. He knew many young girls and boys whose lives had reached a standstill without the documentation to prove their South African citizenship. He sought clarity on how the matter would be resolved, mainly affecting the poorest people. Unemployed, poor people cannot be expected to pay R4 700 for a DNA test. He asked if alternative tests were available in such circumstances. He would bring the details of about ten young people to the attention of the DHA officials.

The Chairperson sought to clarify the border management issue for the members. He explained that a process on porous borders was initiated based on input from the public. Legislation was introduced that led to the creation of the BMA. Members should appreciate the significant work that has been done since then while also acknowledging the weaknesses. The Department had highlighted the BMA funding issue to the Committee. The White Paper should be aligned with the current challenges facing the country. These challenges and weaknesses will be better understood when the BMA presents its Annual Performance Plan and the progress made. Members of Parliament listened to the public and decided to establish the BMA. He then addressed the Minister about his reference to the GNU. He cautioned that he had listened carefully to his responses in the security cluster about when the Bill must be presented to Parliament. Most of the issues about the DHA in the Vulindlela report were either in progress or incomplete. He wanted to know what obstacles were preventing the Department from concluding the process and bringing the Bill to Parliament. The GNU is a statement of intent and does not have a policy. The White Paper was brought forward from the Legacy Report. The Minister should indicate the critical obstacles that would delay the Bill to avoid confusion about how the Executive would continue its work from the Fifth and Sixth Administrations. He questioned the Minister’s comment that the Bill would be tabled in 2027. The understanding was that supplementary issues arising from the Vulindlela report might still go through the Executive process. He questioned the need for a legal opinion on the White Paper. When the President outlined his priorities, he appreciated that this was a Cabinet process and that the consultation on the White Paper had been extensive. He enquired about the tax matter that the Minister had raised. When the Bill is tabled in Parliament, Members can solidify views and interact with the public on the Bill.

He called on the officials of the Department to respond or comment on the issues raised by Members.

Mr Makhode thanked Members for the questions. He explained the genesis of the critical skills list emanating from the DHET mandate and was informed by the country's Human Skills Development Strategy. The DHET leads the process by consulting with all government departments and industries, ending with NEDLAC. The department then publishes the critical skills list from the DHET. The process considers new trends and new industry activities. The last update was in 2022, following the gap from 2014. South Africa is part of the global society. The University of Kwazulu-Natal offers Quantum Dynamics as a field of study. The leading professor in this field became attracted to the university and provided the space to build the body of work. The country would not have benefitted if the professor had not come through the critical skills list. The Centre for High Performance Computing hosts one of the fastest super computers in the world. The international experts working at the centre are all interested in the country's development. A balance must be found between security and economic considerations. The Minister may update the critical skills list as and when required. The latest update was gazetted and is available. Most people working at the Koeberg Nuclear Facility in the Western Cape had to meet the critical skills requirements, similar to those working at the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) in the Northern Cape. He clarified that the 108 applications were not from individuals but from companies, including auto motor companies operating in the Eastern Cape, mining companies, banks and financial services companies, and companies in the energy sector. This forms part of the TES. In a future meeting, he would share with the Committee the investment the TES has brought to the country.

He replied to Mr Roos that the staff shortage issue was raised in 2021. The first business case was presented, and the Department got the go-ahead for 742 positions, which were filled within six months. National Treasury had not yet responded to the second business case. The Department had entered into partnerships through Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) with the understanding that National Treasury would not be able to fund all initiatives. Deloitte and FNB offered to support the Department in the critical skills areas. More companies were keen to offer support. The people in this initiative are legally qualified, but the numbers are inadequate. The approved capacity for the Department is 18 000, but the current number is 7 200. The Department annually lose a number of people to other sectors. The category of people needed are mainly applying for temporary residency visas. He suggested that the BMA should, at an opportune time, present their work to the Committee.

He replied to Mr Mogale that the Department of Health (DoH) requires the DNA test. Normally, the fee is waived on receipt of a report from the Department of Social Development and in consultation with the DOH. The group of people from Afghanistan did not enter the country but was deported to Zambia. Agenda 2063 refers to the mobility of skills, which allows the country to receive anyone. The country has been benefitting from initiatives which involve people from all over the world. The outstanding issue relates to the general principles of the treaty on cross-border work that SARS need to consider. SARS has a tax treaty with 25 countries on the continent and almost 56 countries globally. The matter is whether the period should be six or 12 months. The Department would prefer a longer period. He called on the officials to respond to the questions on their areas of responsibility.

Mr Mavuso said the supplementary work on the White Paper would cover the criticism about the lack of policy-making decisions and the missed opportunity for job creation. The nationwide public support for the White Paper was based on issues raised in public consultation, including delinking citizenship from immigration, getting citizenship through marriage, and the abuse of visa applications. He explained that seeking asylum for good cause refers to people, for example, who might have been trafficked against their will and who managed to escape. Their cooperation helps to apprehend the traffickers. It is healthy for a public policy document to ignite debate. He explained that cases of children born in South Africa to illegal immigrants are presented to the Minister for decision-making after following a particular process and thorough consultation. The first country's principle is sacrosanct in rescuing people from precarious environments, which is a political decision.

He replied to Mr Tetyana that office accommodation standards exist for different offices. Some of the facilities are new while others are old. For example, the Umtata office in the Heritage Building is protected by legislation from being changed. With the support of the Minister, conversations to relocate the office had started. The Department of Public Works is provided with the office specifications, but the delivery usually does not meet specifications. A different strategy was adopted, relying on brick-and-mortar structures and increasing the footprint through mobility by visiting communities that could not travel to city centres. Some initiatives, such as introducing kiosks, were hampered by budgetary constraints.

Mr Thomas Sigama, DDG: Civic Services, DHA, explained the three types of citizenship, i.e. through birth by parents who are both South African, by descent with one of the parents being South African, and through naturalisation where a person has been in the country for a specific period. In the case of the first two types, the parents' supporting documents are scrutinised. The requirements for naturalisation include a police clearance certificate and a language test. An Evaluation Committee would assess the application and perform due diligence before granting naturalised citizenship. The Department would check all the requirements of the presented cases to determine which one of the three categories is applicable. To finalise an application could take up to 12 months.

Mr Modiri Matthews, Acting DDG: Immigration Services, DHA, said a general work visa application requires an employer to prove that the position was advertised and everything possible was done to employ a local person. The evidence must be presented to the Department of Labour, which will then approve an application to employ a foreign national. A good cause within an asylum application refers to asylum seekers who enter the country and need protection from danger in their home countries. The Department would issue a five-day visa to allow the individual to report to a refugee office.  Anyone who stays beyond the five days must go to an immigration office and indicate valid reasons for the stay. To frustrate the process, some people would apply for asylum only when they are about to be deported and after staying in the country for lengthy periods. In these cases, interviews are done to establish good cause, allowing the person to approach a refugee office for an extension beyond the stipulated period.

Mr Simons said since the launch of Operation Vulindlela, the Presidency had introduced stock-take meetings every quarter to assess whether good presentations are being implemented. The Presidency and National Treasury are monitoring the Vulindlela team. The DG leads the team reporting to the President at the Union Buildings. The Executive Committee also monitors the team. He assured the Committee that the monitoring mechanisms are strong. He confirmed that the DHET leads research on the critical skills list, although the DHA publishes the list. Extensive research is done in consultation with other stakeholders such as NEDLAC, the Department of Labour and the public. He explained that the PBS provides for a threshold of a minimum number of points. Although the technical criteria are met, a national security check, e.g. the police clearance certificate, is still a requirement. In response to the one-month TES publication, 108 applications were received. The 71 companies which met the criteria were appointed. A dedicated team in the Large Account Unit works and communicates with 71 employees. It is envisaged that the number of employers will increase since the protocol has been established. Phase 2 of Operation Vulindlela focuses on measuring the initiative's impact. In response to the outcry from tourist groups from China and India, the TES model was used to reduce the number of documents, making the process more efficient.

He replied to Ms Modise-Mpya that the DTIC is monitoring start-up businesses. Double taxation is one of the key areas that negatively impacts applications for remote work visas. The Department had been in consultation with SARS, which allows an exemption only for 183 days, while the Department would prefer a three-year exemption period. He said SARS would be in a better position to clarify the matter.

Mr Njabulo Nzuza, Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, said the visa regime changes should be viewed as enablers of the GNU's goals. Economic growth should be balanced with the country's security situation. The Department must assure the Committee of its commitment to growing the economy within a secure environment. The movement of people is a global phenomenon, but the laws, processes and systems are meant to curtail the illegal movement of people. The Vulindlela report requires the Department to do supplementary work on the White Paper. The proposals on issues such as the digital nomad are meant for South Africa to catch up with the rest of the world. Covid-19 introduced the ability to work in a digital space. The impact can be measured in terms of consumption, which increases when people come to work here. He agreed that the BMA issues would be addressed when the entity presents its Annual Report. The BMA funding issue had been thoroughly discussed during the budget vote. The inability of the Department to grow human capital is linked to the COE cap imposed by National Treasury. The idea is to rely more on a digital environment and less on human capital. The partnerships with the private sector have been helpful in this regard. He disagreed with the comment about an anti-African posture. He acknowledged that late birth registration is a problem that requires attention. The Department of Health should make the paternity test free of charge and simplify the process for indigent people.

The Minister thanked the Deputy Minister and the officials for responding comprehensively to the questions. He noted that the lack of funding is a recurring issue. He advised the Committee to engage National Treasury on the matter. Speaking at an investor conference earlier, he stated that no one would want to invest in a country with internal security problems. A growing economy is needed to fund the border management system. At the same time, a minimum level of security is needed to ensure economic growth. The PBS for work visas has an automation element. He suggested that a calculator could be created on the website for online applications, removing human discretion and bringing more objectivity to the work visa system. Given the extensive nature of the process, he clarified that March 2027 was the original date for the finalisation of the White Paper. He called for upfront consensus on the Bill instead of having to make changes later on in the process. The work on Operation Vulindlela does not require legislative changes. The Immigration Act provides for certain visa categories. Operation Vulindlela has been working hard to find new opportunities within the existing law. New opportunities need to be considered in the White Paper. The impression should not be created that a White Paper is a silver bullet. Administrative processes should be part of the reforms because legislation cannot fix administration. The comment about good presentations but poor implementation is noted and would be followed through. For example, within a year from now, the Department should be able to report on the tourist numbers from China and India. The same should apply for visas on the PBS. The critical skills list aims to reduce the skills shortage over time. Research conducted by National Treasury has shown that creating jobs is the second most powerful thing to do after resolving loadshedding. He urged the Committee to think about Home Affairs at home. The Department could create a channel for people to access services from their homes through a smart device or at the local library. A Home Affairs facility should exist in a local community centre. The channel would improve service delivery for people within their communities.

The Chairperson thanked the Minister and Deputy Minister for their feedback. The Committee would monitor the progress and call the Department for an update on the programme. The Committee would engage National Treasury during the oversight visit regarding the border management funding issue. He thanked Members for their contributions and for providing guidance on some of the issues. He urged the Minister to fast-track the process regarding the Bill.

Announcement
Considering the House Sitting within the next hour, he proposed deferring the remaining agenda items and requesting the Secretariat arrange a virtual meeting for this purpose. Members agreed with the proposal.

The meeting was adjourned.