Adv. Sipho Mantula from the Thabo Mbeki African School of Public and International Affairs has stated that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s “soft diplomacy” approach to addressing South Africa’s immigration crisis may have come too late.
Mantula acknowledged the importance of Ramaphosa’s call to engage other African nations on migration patterns, noting the President’s announcement that South Africa would deploy envoys across the continent and globally to frame migration as a shared challenge rather than a solely South African issue. This follows a recent three-day state visit during which Ramaphosa discussed migration with a visiting African head of state.
However, Mantula questioned the timing of the strategy. With the African Union summit in Cairo approaching—where Ghana has already indicated it will raise migration concerns—and the SADC summit scheduled for August in Dar es Salaam, where South Africa will assume chairmanship duties, Mantula suggested these forums may now be the more appropriate venues for such dialogue. “It might be late,” he noted, asking why wait for the AU summit when regional bodies could act sooner.
Mantula emphasized that while addressing continental and global migration patterns is necessary, Ramaphosa’s address missed a critical element: direct national and local dialogue with South Africans concerned about illegal immigration. “He could have raised it,” Mantula said, adding that while law enforcement measures are important, engagement remains essential under South Africa’s foreign policy of Ubuntu—”I am because we are.”
The advocate highlighted that South Africa faces an influx it “can’t manage,” and the country is now “dealing with damages.” He noted that immigration and migration fall under human security, an area where South Africa holds influence through its seat on the AU Peace and Security Council. Economic growth, which Ramaphosa cited as a challenge, requires more concrete new proposals beyond what was stated two years ago, Mantula added.
On practical measures, Mantula referenced Ramaphosa’s announcement that refugee reception centers currently located in Pretoria and East London would be relocated to border posts, aligning with African practice. He pointed out that the SADC region has yet to fully apply the lesson that such centers should be situated near borders. Mantula also noted the prolonged silence of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on integration challenges.
Recalling the 2008 xenophobic violence that claimed nearly 62 lives, including five South Africans, Mantula stressed that violence remains an agitating force requiring proactive management. He questioned the outcomes of a recent SADC foreign ministers’ retreat in Mpumalanga regarding the free movement of people and goods within the region.
While welcoming Ramaphosa’s condemnation of violence against African non-nationals and promised measures, Mantula concluded that “soft diplomacy of sending envoys” is insufficient at this stage. “We have to deal with people-to-people engagement,” he said, suggesting that upcoming continental summits in 2026 may offer the ideal platforms to begin those critical conversations.
