By Akani Nkuna
International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola has said that placing South Africa at the centre of the continent’s migration debate will leave the causes of irregular migration unaddressed.
Addressing the media in Pretoria on Wednesday, Lamola said migration should be discussed as a continent-wide challenge linked to conflict, economic pressures, governance, development and regional integration.
“[J]ust discussing South Africa when dealing with migration in the continent will not resolve the problem. It is a problem that must be engaged in comprehensively with all its facets,” he said.
Lamola cited a United Nations refugee agency report that 144 refugees and migrants were reported dead or missing following maritime incidents off the coast of Mauritania in July while attempting to reach Europe from West Africa.
He also referred to the recent mass crossing of migrants from Morocco into Ceuta, Spain’s North African enclave, as further evidence that irregular migration was not a challenge confronting South Africa alone.
His comments followed Ghana’s proposal that xenophobic violence in South Africa be placed on the agenda of the African Union’s Mid-Year Coordination Meeting.
Nigeria has separately raised concerns with Pretoria about the treatment of Nigerian and other African migrants in South Africa.
The AU Executive Council ultimately decided not to place migration on the agenda of the upcoming meeting. South Africa had opposed treating xenophobic violence in the country as a stand-alone issue and instead called for a wider continental discussion on migration.
Lamola said South Africa rejected attempts to portray migration as a phenomenon exclusive to the country, adding that such an approach would fail to consider migration trends elsewhere on the continent.
South Africa remains one of Africa’s major destinations for both regular and irregular migrants and has faced growing domestic tensions over immigration and access to jobs and public services.
“In other words you can say we are sometimes victims of agreeing to the protocols of Africa integration. If you put it in an agenda and say ‘xenophobia in SA,’ what will happen is that SA will almost be in some kind of a court or inquiry where we must go there and defend ourselves,” said Lamola.
The minister also addressed South Africa’s exclusion from G20 proceedings under the United States’ 2026 presidency, saying the government welcomed a decision by the AU Executive Council to raise the matter.
Lamola said South Africa was a founding member of the G20 and argued that its exclusion should be discussed by the forum. He also called for greater clarity on the procedures governing the participation of founding members.
“This firm position to raise this matter will advocate for inclusivity and ensures that the exclusion of SA, as a founding member, is discussed at the table of the G20,” Lamola added.
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