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Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Correspondent
PEOPLE from Matabeleland seeking South African work and study permits can now process their papers in Bulawayo as the Embassy of South Africa has opened offices locally.

The opening of the offices has been welcomed by prospective scholars and job seekers.

Previously, the permit seekers were forced to travel to Harare for the process.

The new offices are located along Samuel Parirenyatwa Street between 13th and 14 Avenue and they opened doors for the public on December, 1.

The Embassy of South Africa partnered VFS Global for the processing of the visa and VFS Global posted the information on their website http://www.vfsglobal.com/SouthAfrica/Zimbabwe/news.html.

“VFS Global and the Embassy of South Africa in Zimbabwe announce the official launch of the South Africa Visa Application Centres in Harare and Bulawayo,” reads information on company’s website.

The Embassy of South Africa had its offices in the Harare where applications are processed but it subcontracted VFS Global to collect applications in both Harare and Bulawayo.

“Effective 1 December 2016, applicants will be required to apply in person for their South Africa visas at the conveniently located centres at South Africa Visa Application Centre, VFS Visa Processing Centre, Celestial Park, Block 6 Ground Floor Harare and South Africa Visa Application Centre VFS Visa Processing Centre, 128 Samuel Parirenyatwa Street between 13th and 14th Avenue Bulawayo.”

Miss Nontando Ndlovu, a student at Rhodes University in South Africa said the opening of the offices locally was a welcome development as it eliminated the hustle of travelling to Harare to process the papers.

She said her permit is due to expire at the end of month and she has already started the process of renewing it.

“It’s always a hustle having to travel to Harare to process the visa. So I was relieved to learn that the embassy has opened offices in Bulawayo. I’ve already processed my papers. I have saved on travelling and accommodation costs. Previously it was taking longer to process the documents as it was done in a single office in Harare so naturally they were overwhelmed with work,” said Miss Ndlovu.

Another permit seeker said the country should emulate the decentralisation process as it will result in many people accessing documents.

“It was a bother when everything was being processed in Harare so the decentralisation is a welcome development. We hope even our local Registrar General’s Office can emulate this by spreading their offices to districts so that everyone can easily access important documents,” said a man who declined to be named.

@nqotshili