Zimbabweans Return Home After Anti-Immigrant Threats in South Africa
Thousands of Zimbabweans fled South Africa following intimidation by anti-immigrant groups and are now confronting economic hardship back home.
In response to raids and threats from anti-immigrant protesters who demanded undocumented migrants leave South Africa by June 30, thousands of Zimbabweans returned to their homeland. Information Minister Zhemu Soda reported that more than 116,000 had arrived by late July, with roughly 37,000 assisted by the state and the rest traveling independently, while tens of thousands have registered for employment. Returnees face the same economic challenges that drove them abroad; many, like Samantha Chimbuya, struggle to find work and depend on relatives, and others await promised business grants.
Some migrants, such as carpenter Sidney Bunya, have leveraged skills learned in South Africa to launch enterprises that now employ several people. Faith-based groups are supplying shelter, food and training, yet leaders like Ray Motsi and activist Rashweat Mukundu call for systematic government support, including grants, agricultural inputs and vocational programs, to ensure sustainable livelihoods.
Why it matters
The mass return highlights the social and economic strain of xenophobic campaigns on migrant communities and host nations.
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