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South Africa's foreign ministry has called for an Africa-wide conference to address migration on the continent, following weeks of deadly anti-migrant violence and tensions over undocumented foreign workers. The proposal, announced Thursday, seeks to revisit a decade-old African Union (AU) decision to tackle migration as an issue of economic development, regional integration, peace and governance.

The ministry said the meeting would also address the root causes of anti-migrant sentiment and develop a continent-wide response to xenophobia, discrimination and violence. “The need for this dialogue has become increasingly urgent. Migration is a continental phenomenon whose consequences extend beyond the jurisdiction of any single state,” the statement said. “Although Africa has participated in discussions on migration with other regions of the world, the continent has yet to convene a comprehensive forum of its own at which member states can collectively examine Africa's migration challenges and opportunities."

Coverage comparison

Two separate reports from Africa News (via Africanews and AFP) cover the developments. One focuses on the foreign ministry's call for a pan-African conference, while the other highlights President Cyril Ramaphosa's appeal to the Pan-African Parliament, the legislative body of the AU. Both reports note the violence and the exodus of migrants, though they emphasize different aspects: the first details the scale of departures and the involvement of Ghana and Nigeria in calling for AU debate; the second centers on Ramaphosa's remarks and the specific case of a Nigerian national who died in police custody.

Key claims

  • South Africa has proposed an Africa-wide conference on migration, as announced by the foreign ministry, to revisit a decade-old AU decision and develop a continent-wide response to xenophobia and discrimination.
  • At least four migrants have been killed in the violence, according to South African police, though some foreign governments say the death toll is higher.
  • More than 176,000 people have left South Africa in recent weeks, according to an AFP tally based on figures from African countries that have repatriated their nationals. Another report states tens of thousands have left over the last two months, with Ghana, Nigeria and Malawi assisting repatriation.
  • Ghana and Nigeria have called for an African Union debate on the anti-migrant violence.
  • A Nigerian national died while under arrest in Cape Town; Abuja has accused police of using “egregious tactics that led to his death.”
  • Ramaphosa condemned the attacks on migrants, calling them “sad and abhorrent,” and said South Africa “deeply regrets and mourns” the lives lost. He also stated South Africa has taken “a firm stand against hatred for people from other countries, xenophobia or Afrophobia.”

Perspectives

The South African government, through President Ramaphosa and the foreign ministry, frames the violence as a continental challenge that requires cooperative solutions. Ramaphosa told the Pan-African Parliament that unmanaged cross-border movement could undermine security and social order, and that no country should address the challenge alone. The foreign ministry similarly stressed that migration's consequences “extend beyond the jurisdiction of any single state.”

Other African governments, specifically Ghana and Nigeria, have taken a more critical stance. Ghana has been an outspoken critic of the fatal attacks and, along with Nigeria, has called for an AU debate on the anti-migrant violence. Nigeria, in particular, accused South African police of “egregious tactics” in the death of a Nigerian national in Cape Town, signaling strained diplomatic relations over the handling of the crisis.