Government Printing Works

Government Security Printing Servicesgpwonline.co.za

Government Printing Works is a South African Government Component reporting to the Department of Home Affairs that provides security printing of national identity and travel documents and publishes official government gazettes via its eGazette digital platform. It serves all spheres of the South African Government from a Pretoria-based high-tech production facility.

Company typePrivate
Founded2009
HeadquartersPretoria, South Africa
Headcount501–1,000
GTM typeB2B
OfferingServices

What Government Printing Works does

Government Printing Works (GPW) is a South African Government Component that provides security printing and official publication services to all spheres of government. Established in its current legal form on 9 October 2009 under Government Gazette 32616 and reporting to the Department of Home Affairs, GPW operates from a high-tech production facility in Pretoria and leverages over 130 years of institutional security printing experience to position itself as Africa's leading security printing specialist.

Its core operations span four revenue streams: (1) security document printing covering green book identity documents, ID smartcards, airline crew cards, firearm permits, SARS customs official cards, correctional service cards, citizen/diplomatic/official passports, refugee and permanent resident travel documents, and high-security certificates (birth, death, education, vehicular, refugee, police permits, visas); (2) the eGazette digital platform publishing Government, Provincial, Legal, Liquor License gazettes, Acts, Tender Bulletins, and Notice Forms; (3) examination document printing and packaging for the education sector; and (4) general government printing and stationery. Production capacity reaches 3-9 million ID cards, 1.2-3 million passport booklets, 140-360 million A4 certificate equivalents annually, and 276,000 examination scripts per day.

GPW monetises through quote-based one-time fees for security printing and transaction fees for gazette submissions, with Contact Centre agents generating quotations tied to unique banking reference numbers. Distribution is direct-to-government for security documents and through the eGazettes self-serve platform for publications. The customer base is effectively a single counterparty: the South African Government, served through a Pretoria-centric office network with regional offices in Polokwane, Mahikeng, and East London. POPIA compliance governs all personal information handling in gazette publishing.

Government Printing Works firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Government Printing Works
Legal name: Government Printing Works
Website: https://gpwonline.co.za
Company type: Private
Founded year: 2009
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 501–1,000 employees
Short description: Government Printing Works is a South African Government Component reporting to the Department of Home Affairs that provides security printing of national identity and travel documents and publishes official government gazettes via its eGazette digital platform. It serves all spheres of the South African Government from a Pretoria-based high-tech production facility.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Government Printing Works industry classification

Industry

Product category: Government Security Printing Services
NAICS: Other General Government Support (92119), National Security and International Affairs (9281)
SIC: Commercial Printing (2750)
akta.pro primary industry: Printing & Business Forms (continuous forms, checks, tickets) (IMAMAHAH)
akta.pro secondary industries: Government, Public Policy & Regulatory Reference (Public Administration, Regulatory Guidance) (EDAGAGAK), Print, Mailroom & Document Workflow Services (Inbound/Outbound Processing) (BPAAAKAL)

Keywords

Security printing services
Government gazette publishing
Identity document production
Passport manufacturing
Examination document printing

Where Government Printing Works is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Pretoria
HQ country: South Africa
HQ region: Africa

Offices7 records

Markets served

Government Printing Works business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

Security Document Printing: Production of high-security government documents including passports, visas, birth certificates, ID books, smart card identification, and firearm permits for national use.
Government Gazette Publication: Publication and distribution of Government Gazettes, Provincial Gazettes, Legal Gazettes, Liquor License Gazettes, Tender Bulletins, Acts, and Notice Forms through the eGazettes platform.
Examination Materials Printing: Printing and packaging of examination documents and scripts for educational institutions.
General Government Printing: Stationery and general publications printing services for government departments.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Government Printing Works product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Government Printing Works (GPW) is a South African government component that provides security printing services and official government publication services. It manufactures high-security identity and travel documents (passports, ID smartcards, birth/death certificates, firearm permits) for national use and publishes Government Gazettes, Provincial Gazettes, Legal Gazettes, Tender Bulletins, and Acts through its eGazettes digital platform. GPW also prints and packages examination materials for educational institutions and delivers general stationery and publication printing for all spheres of government.

Product overview

Government Printing Works (GPW) offers a portfolio of security printing services and digital government publishing platforms. The core offerings include: (1) eGazette - an electronic government gazette system for publishing Government Gazettes, Provincial Gazettes, Legal Gazettes, Liquor License Gazettes, Acts, and Tender Bulletins; (2) security printing of high-value identity documents including ID smartcards, passports, travel documents, and certificates with a production capacity of millions of documents annually; (3) examination document printing and packaging services; and (4) a tender procurement portal. GPW operates as a government component reporting to the Department of Home Affairs, providing these services to all spheres of government.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

eGazette Platform Electronic government gazette system enabling online publication, submission, and management of Government Gazettes, Provincial Gazettes, Legal Gazettes, Liquor License Gazettes, Acts, Tender Bulletins, and Notice Forms. The system generates unique reference numbers to facilitate payment for gazette submissions.
Government Gazettes Official national government publications containing notices, announcements, and legal documents from the South African government, distributed through the eGazettes platform.
Provincial Gazettes Official provincial-level government publications for South Africa's nine provinces containing notices and announcements specific to each province.
Legal Gazettes Legal gazette publications containing court notices, legal announcements, and judicial information distributed through the eGazettes platform.
Liquor License Gazettes Publications containing liquor license applications, notices, and regulatory information for alcohol licensing distributed via the eGazettes platform.
Tender Bulletin Government tender opportunities and procurement notices published for government departments via the eGazettes platform.
Acts Collection of South African legislation and acts published through the gazette system for legal reference and public notice.
Identity Documents Security-printed national identity documents including green book identity documents, ID smartcards, airline crew member cards, firearm permit cards, SARS custom official cards, and correctional service official cards, with a production capacity of 3 million to 9 million cards per annum.
Travel Documents (Passports) Security printing of passports including Citizen, Diplomatic, and Official Passports, as well as Refugee and Permanent Resident Travel Documents in minor and adult versions, with a production capacity of 1.2 million to 3 million passport booklets per annum.
High Security Certificates Security-printed certificates including Birth, Death, Basic and Higher Education Certificates, Vehicular, Refugee, Permanent Resident and Police Permits, Visas, and other paper Travel Documents, with capacity of 140 million to 360 million A4 equivalents per annum.
Examination Documents Printing and packaging of examination scripts for educational institutions, with capacity to print 276,000 scripts per day and package 840,000 scripts per day.
Tenders (Procurement Portal) Government procurement portal providing access to tender opportunities, awarded bids, cancelled bids, and closing registers for prospective service providers and suppliers.
Notice Forms Gazette Interactive gazette notice forms for submitting legal notices, liquor notices, national gazette notices, and provincial gazette notices for publication in the Government Gazette.

Companies that use Government Printing Works

Customer profile

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Government Printing Works technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Government Printing Works partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

Department of Home AffairscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGPW is a government component reporting to the Department of Home Affairs. The Minister of Home Affairs provides oversight and governance for GPW operations.
South African GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGPW serves all spheres of government (national, provincial, local) providing security printing services and gazette publications as mandated under its Government Component status established in 2009.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Government Printing Works competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Veridos: Joint venture of Giesecke+Devrient and Bundesdruckerei providing integrated identity solutions for governments, including passports, ID cards, and border management systems. Directly comparable focus on government identity programs.
Giesecke+Devrient: German-headquartered global security technology company producing banknotes, ID documents, passports, and smart cards. Comparable scale, government-client focus, and product range as GPW's security printing operations.
Polish Security Printing Works (PWPW): Polish state-owned security printer producing banknotes, passports, ID cards, and government documents. Highly comparable state-owned mandate, product portfolio, and operational model to GPW.
IDEMIA: French-based global leader in identity and security solutions producing passports, ID cards, smart cards, and biometric identification systems for governments worldwide. Strong product-by-product overlap with GPW.
Bundesdruckerei: German state-owned security printer producing passports, ID documents, and banknotes for the Federal Republic of Germany. Highly comparable mandate, state-ownership structure, and product focus to GPW.
CCL Secure: Australia/UK-headquartered security printer producing polymer banknotes, security documents, and authentication features for central banks and governments. Comparable technology base and government-client focus.
De La Rue: UK-based global commercial security printer and the world's largest commercial banknote producer; produces identity documents, passports, and security paper for governments worldwide. Highly comparable to GPW across security printing product lines.

Broad incumbents

Toppan Printing: Japanese printing conglomerate with a security printing division covering passports, banknotes, and identity documents. Broad commercial printing portfolio but a directly comparable security printing segment.
Thales (Digital Identity & Security): French multinational with a large Digital Identity & Security division producing government IDs, passports, smart cards, and border management systems. Broader portfolio but materially overlapping capabilities in security printing.

Regional players

Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company: Nigerian state-owned security printer producing banknotes, passports, identity documents, and coins for Nigeria. Similar state-owned African security printing mandate; serves a different geography and does not directly compete in South Africa.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Government Printing Works compliance and trust

Trust signal

Compliance1 record

Government Printing Works financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Government Printing Works leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Government Printing Works funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Government Printing Works M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Government Printing Works

What does Government Printing Works do?

Is Government Printing Works a public or private company?

Government Printing Works is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.

When was Government Printing Works founded?

Government Printing Works was founded in 2009. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.

Where is Government Printing Works based?

Government Printing Works is headquartered in Pretoria, South Africa, in the Africa region.

How does Government Printing Works make money?

Four revenue lines are on record. Security Document Printing is the primary driver. The others are government Gazette Publication, examination Materials Printing and general Government Printing.

Who are Government Printing Works's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Veridos, Giesecke+Devrient, Polish Security Printing Works (PWPW), IDEMIA, Bundesdruckerei, CCL Secure and De La Rue. Broad incumbents are Toppan Printing and Thales (Digital Identity & Security). Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company is listed as a regional player.

Does Government Printing Works have an API?

No public API is recorded for Government Printing Works.

What industry is Government Printing Works in?

Government Printing Works's product category is Government Security Printing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAMAHAH, Printing & Business Forms (continuous forms, checks, tickets), with a secondary code of EDAGAGAK, Government, Public Policy & Regulatory Reference (Public Administration, Regulatory Guidance). Its NAICS code is 92119 and its SIC code is 2750.