[17 May 2025] The Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies launched a roadmap for the digital transformation of government on 13 May 2025.
South Africa’s Roadmap for the Digital Transformation of Government 2025
The intention of the Digital Transformation Roadmap is to modernise government services through digitisation and to develop “digital public infrastructure” or “DPI”, including a unified portal for access to all government services online (referred to as “Digital Mzanzi”). It proposes a new approach to digital transformation, taking inspiration from successful peers such as India, Brazil and the United Kingdom.
The Roadmap features the following phases and milestones:
- Phase 1 (2025 – 2027) will prioritise social protection and its linkages with learning and earning opportunities due to its direct impact on millions of vulnerable South Africans. The focus will be on digitising services for faster, more reliable access, linking social grants to employment, training, and income-generating opportunities to create pathways to sustainable livelihoods. Additionally, technology will be used to address issues such as fraud and exclusion in grants, saving money and strengthening public trust.
- Phase 2 (2028 – 2030) will expand focus to other key sectors, such as healthcare, education, and business services, building on the lessons learned from Phase 1 to scale successful technologies across government.