AU Backs Broader Migration Debate Across Africa

The African Union (AU) has agreed to hold a broader discussion on migration across the continent instead of focusing exclusively on recent xenophobic unrest in South Africa, according to a South African government official.

The decision follows calls by Ghana for attacks on foreign nationals in South Africa to be included as a standalone agenda item at the AU’s upcoming mid-year coordination meeting. However, South Africa’s proposal to address migration as a wider continental issue received the backing of member states.

South Africa’s Department of International Relations official, Clayson Monyela, said the proposal to single out the country was not adopted. Instead, AU leaders agreed to examine migration in a broader context, including the economic, social and political factors that drive people to leave their home countries and those that attract migrants to other parts of the continent.

The development comes after months of anti-immigrant protests in South Africa, during which foreign nationals were targeted in several communities. The unrest prompted thousands of migrants to leave the country, while Ghana organised the voluntary return of hundreds of its citizens ahead of a June 30 deadline set by an anti-migrant movement calling for undocumented foreigners to leave South Africa.

Local media reported that the AU opted to frame migration as a shared continental challenge rather than isolate South Africa during its deliberations. Neither South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation nor the Ghanaian government had commented on the reports at the time of publication.

The AU’s broader approach is expected to encourage discussions on coordinated migration policies and regional cooperation at the upcoming meeting.

SOURCE: Reuters