African leaders failing their people drive migration to SA: Naledi Pandor

Foreign nationals from other African countries migrate to South Africa primarily because their home governments fail to adequately provide for them.

This is according to former minister of international relations and cooperation and current Nelson Mandela University chancellor Naledi Pandor.

Speaking on the African Renaissance podcast, Pandor criticised African leaders for failing to address the root causes driving their citizens to flee to South Africa.

“What our leaders are not doing is asking themselves why so many of their citizens wish to be in South Africa,” Pandor said.

“Why do they come here? Essentially, they arrive as economic migrants or political asylum seekers. It means that a number of countries on the African continent are not doing what they should to provide for their people.

“They are not getting their economies right, and they lack freedom of association, expression, and human rights. People are running to South Africa because those protections exist here.”

Her comments come as South Africa faces a surge of anti-illegal immigration protests, which have heightened diplomatic tensions across the continent. Thousands of immigrants have fled the country, while others have been deported.

Blaming the whole of South Africa for the actions of a group is problematic, especially coming from two countries that have previously repatriated Africans from their own borders

—  Naledi Pandor, NMU chancellor

Ghana and Nigeria have joined forces to condemn the attacks targeting foreign nationals in South Africa, characterising the incidents as xenophobic and Afrophobic. The two nations agreed to collaborate closely to ensure the issue is firmly placed on the agenda at the next African Union (AU) summit.

International relations and cooperation minister Ronald Lamola met with fellow African ministers to address these developments, assuring them that law enforcement officials are intervening while reaffirming South Africa’s commitment to protecting the rights of all foreign nationals.

Pandor expressed disappointment with the responses from Accra and Abuja, emphasising that Pretoria has consistently spoken out against violent attacks on foreigners.

“I was disappointed in the reaction because I think those leaders know the South African government is not behind what has been happening here.

“They know there are organisations leading these anti-migrant attitudes, and the government has tried to act to assert human rights and non-violence.

“Blaming the whole of South Africa for the actions of a group is problematic, especially coming from two countries that have previously repatriated Africans from their own borders.”

Pandor urged continental leaders to confront the immigration crisis at its root rather than relying on scapegoats.

“The issue of migration is a difficult dilemma, but we have to address it. Too often on our continent, our leaders avoid complexity. When a subject is too complicated, they divert to something else instead of confronting it directly.”

TimesLIVE

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