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migrationlatest news & developments

Pretoria says Ghana and Nigeria's 'isolation campaign' will fail

South Africa's Presidency has welcomed Ghana and Nigeria's proposal for an African Union debate on migration, but firmly states that attempts to use the issue to diplomatically…

Icon: Nelson Mandela was no saint

South Africa's debt to Africa

South Africa's freedom was never a purely South African achievement. The country liberated by African solidarity should not allow anger over migration to become an alibi for…

Migration tests SA's standing in Africa

The diplomatic fallout from South Africa’s migration tensions escalated this week after The Presidency accused Ghana of helping to drive a campaign portraying Pretoria as…

President Cyril Ramaphosa

Presidency accuses Ghana of leading campaign against South Africa

The Presidency has accused Ghana of leading what it describes as a campaign to falsely portray South Africa as increasingly isolated on the continent, saying the issue has…

Development-Linked Financial Architecture (DLFA): Financing stability in an age of migration

Migration is a defining policy challenge for South Africa and the African continent, often viewed through the lens of border management. This article argues that migration is…

The country that forgot its own lesson: Xenophobia, memory and the pass book that never quite left

A powerful analysis of South Africa's deepening xenophobia, drawing parallels between current anti-migrant movements and the country's apartheid past. It explores how economic…

What’s driving anti-immigrant healthcare blockades? Sharon Ekambaram from Lawyers for Human Rights says it’s everything from the sky-high cost of Zimbabwean passports and corruption to South Africa’s institutionalised xenophobia — and a growing global intolerance of migrants. (Bhekisisa team)

The migrant and the citizen: we need new forms of political community

South Africa's struggles with xenophobia, particularly against migrants from elsewhere in Africa, are not new. This article argues that blaming migrants deflects from deeper…

Behind the March and March hype

In the current hype surrounding 'mabahambe' (they must go) in South Africa, we risk losing an important opportunity for serious intellectual and analytical engagement. This piece…

Hostility: South Africa is broken ... but it must not become brutal, if we want renewal, we must confront systems, not strangers.

A broken home looking for a villain to blame

As many marched to demand the removal of undocumented migrants from South Africa, the message was clear: migrants must go. But this article argues that the anger is misdirected,…

Minister of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Maropene Ramokgopa

Youth Month 2026: Building peace around migration through diplomacy and ubuntu

Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the 1976 Soweto Uprising, South Africa's Youth Month focuses on building peace around migration. The article highlights the importance of…

Epicentre of the crisis: About 10 000 Malawian nationals facing xenophobia elected to be repatriated and gathered at a migration transit camp in Sherwood, Durban since last Sunday. Photos: Lyse Comins

South Africa cannot deport its way out of regional crisis

South Africa is hurtling towards a precipice pushed by a toxic mix of economic despair, populist political posturing and systemic state failure that threatens to ignite…

Subject of discussion: Ghana MPs call for continental action against xenophobic violence in South Africa. Photo: Parliament of Ghana

Tension at home; citizens quizzed

Growing criticism across Africa questions South Africa's handling of migration, with countries like the Republic of Congo and Malawi initiating repatriation. The backlash is…

Effective border management relies on both strong infrastructure and intelligence-driven cooperation with neighbouring states. Photo: Supplied

Border management is not development policy: Why enforcement alone cannot solve migration pressures

Effective border management is a public consensus in South Africa, but this article questions whether enforcement alone can solve migration pressures. It argues that migration is…

Department of Home Affairs manager Cyril Mncwabe (left)  KZN Premier Thami Ntuli (middle) and SAPS eThekwini district commissioner Major General Makhosazana Kheswa (right) visit the Sherwood Hall grounds in Durban where an estimated 10 000 Malawians have gathered seeking repatriation over the past week. Photo: Lyse Comins

SA xenophobia: Births, rising fury and the state’s deportation crackdown

A humanitarian crisis is escalating in Durban's Sherwood Hall transit camp, where thousands of undocumented Malawian nationals, including families like Mussa Peters', face dire…

Xenophobia sparks humanitarian crisis: 8000 gather at Durban transit site

Over 8000 Malawian nationals have gathered at Durban's Sherwood Community Hall, seeking repatriation after a wave of xenophobia and violence in South Africa. The situation is…

UN urges calm as migration tensions draw international attention

The United Nations urges calm and respect for the rule of law in South Africa amidst escalating migration-related tensions, condemning violence, vigilantism, and hate speech. The…

Homeward bound: The first group of 300 Ghanaians departing from OR Tambo International Airport, east of Johannesburg, to Ghana on Wednesday. Photo: Ghana High Commission, South Africa

Ghana repatriates 300 citizens from SA

The rare voluntary state-assisted return for Ghanaians, which comes amid rising anti-immigrant sentiment, has sparked debate on xenophobia, migration policy and precedent

Africa’s migration challenge cannot be resolved through enforcement alone. Nor can it be addressed through abstract continental declarations disconnected from implementation realities.

From migration pressure to development architecture: Why Africa needs an economic diplomacy framework

At present, most policy responses remain fragmented. Governments focus on border enforcement, documentation systems, policing and short-term political responses. Yet these…

Afro soul star: Berita will be holding a special Workers’ Day performance at The Market Theatre.

Berita’s ‘Echoes of The Soul’: A meditation on migrant workers

Berita’s Workers’ Day performance becomes a powerful meditation on migration, memory and xenophobia in a nation built through labour, movement and forgotten solidarities

Global reality: Africa plays an increasingly central role in global debates surrounding development finance, climate governance, migration and international peace and security yet it does not have influence. Photo: APS

“You don’t get what you deserve; you get what you negotiate”

As the global order becomes more multipolar, opportunities for African agency are expanding. Yet these opportunities will only translate into meaningful influence if African…