By Kingston Magare 9.6.2026
The countries whose citizens have been affected by xenophobic protests in South Africa are speeding up efforts to evacuate as the June 30 deadline given by protesting South Africans draws near.
Malawi with the largest number of immigrants to South Africa have been processing hundreds of returnees at the border, Ghana is still moving its people, while Nigeria will start evacuating about a 1000 Nigerians who have registered to leave by Wednesday.
This is just as organisers of the protest against African migrants are going from city to city calling out their government to deport all immigrants.
The South African government has been unable to stop the protests which have often turned violent. According to President Cyril Ramaphosa the protests have been about undocumented immigration rather than xenophobia.
Ramaphosa stated that the Department of Home Affairs, the Border Management Authority (BMA), the South African Police Service (SAPS), and other law enforcement agencies will intensify efforts to identify and deport undocumented foreign nationals residing illegally in South Africa.
Meanwhile, Nigerian foreign Affairs Minister Bianca Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, has debunked the claim most Nigerians living in South Africa are undocumented. She stated that all Nigerians living in that country are legit yet their businesses have been destroyed and their children prevented from going to school.
“You are liars. Our citizens are in peril. They are in distress, so they cannot be said to be illegal immigrants,” Mrs. Odemegwu-Ojukwu said in Abuja.
“People who are doing legitimate business have their shops looted, they have their shops set on fire,” she added.
She stated that retaliatory measures by Nigeria is not totally off the table as over 120 South African businesses are operating in Nigeria.
Ojukwu expressed disappointment at what she described as the treatment of Nigerians despite Nigeria’s historical support for South Africa during the anti-apartheid struggle.
“Why are they harassing Nigerians in South Africa?” she asked.
