MANAGING ECONOMIC MIGRATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

This research paper by the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) analyzes South Africa's immigration regime and its impact on African economic migrants. It examines the tension between the government's desire to attract highly skilled talent and its efforts to deter irregular, semi-skilled migration. The paper evaluates the 2016 Green Paper on International Migration, noting its potential to streamline some processes while criticizing its regressive proposals for asylum seekers. It also compares South African policies with those of the European Union and discusses the role of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in regional migration governance.

• South Africa's approach to migration is characterized by a dichotomy where the government welcomes highly skilled migrants but views irregular, semi-skilled, or unskilled migration as a national security threat.
• The 2016 Green Paper on International Migration introduces a 'risk-based' approach that includes biometric verification and security screening, but it is criticized for regressive proposals regarding asylum seekers, such as the creation of 'asylum seeker processing centres' and the removal of automatic rights to work and study.
• South Africa has one of the highest deportation rates globally, yet this has proven ineffective as a deterrent against irregular migration.
• Xenophobic attacks in South Africa are driven by competition for resources, unemployment, and poor service delivery, despite evidence that migrants are often self-employed and create jobs for locals.
• The critical skills visa regime is hindered by a lack of interdepartmental coordination, specifically because the Department of Higher Education (DHE) has not updated the skills-shortage list since its first publication.
• The Licensing of Small Businesses Bill is viewed as a measure to restrict economic migrants from operating informal businesses, such as spaza shops, by imposing onerous licensing and paperwork requirements.
• South Africa's regional migration governance is limited by a lack of consensus among SADC members regarding the free movement of people, with the 2005 Draft Protocol on the Facilitation of Movement of Persons remaining unenforceable due to a lack of ratifications.
• The Employment Services Act (ESA) 2014 is a positive step toward protecting 'vulnerable workers', including economic migrants, by allowing them to enforce statutory claims against employers even without a valid work permit.
• South Africa is experiencing a 'brain drain' where professional emigration significantly outweighs professional immigration; between 1989 and 2003, 120,000 skilled South Africans emigrated, which was more than eight times the number of professionals who immigrated.

APA

PARSHOTAM, A., & NCUBE, C. (2017). MANAGING ECONOMIC MIGRATION IN SOUTH AFRICA. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Occasional-Paper-265.pdf

Chicago

PARSHOTAM, ASMITA, and CHARISMA NCUBE. MANAGING ECONOMIC MIGRATION IN SOUTH AFRICA. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2017. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Occasional-Paper-265.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=PARSHOTAM |first1=ASMITA |last2=NCUBE |first2=CHARISMA |title=MANAGING ECONOMIC MIGRATION IN SOUTH AFRICA |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=September 2017 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Occasional-Paper-265.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{parshotam2017managing, author = {PARSHOTAM, ASMITA and NCUBE, CHARISMA}, title = {{MANAGING ECONOMIC MIGRATION IN SOUTH AFRICA}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2017}, month = sep, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Occasional-Paper-265.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }