Kenya will facilitate the repatriation of Kenyans living in South Africa between Saturday, June 27, and next Friday, according to a notice granting safe passage to citizens.
In the notice dated Friday, June 26, Kenya’s High Commissioner to South Africa said the exercise targets Kenyans with “irregular status” in the country who require emergency travel documents.
“This is to notify you that several Kenyans from various parts of South Africa will be travelling to the Kenya High Commission in Pretoria between 27th June and 3rd July 2026,” said the notice signed by Elizabeth Choge.
She added, “Kindly note that some of these Kenyans have irregular status in South Africa and are hence proceeding to the High Commission in Pretoria to obtain travel documents to facilitate their repatriation back home by the Government of Kenya.
“The High Commission also appealed to South African authorities to allow the affected Kenyans to travel without interference.
“Please grant them safe passage,” the notice stated.
The notice comes after at least 50 Kenyan nationals officially sought urgent government-assisted repatriation from South Africa following rising anti-foreigner tensions.
The affected Kenyans say they have been displaced from their homes, while others report their businesses and property were looted, vandalised or destroyed during attacks.
Several anti-immigrant groups have also issued ultimatums demanding that foreign nationals leave parts of South Africa by June 30.
Others say they have lost their jobs as protests and boycotts targeting foreign workers spread across several communities.
The Kenyan government estimates that about 27,000 Kenyans live in South Africa on a long-term basis.
However, the Kenyan High Commission in Pretoria and the Kenyan Diaspora in South Africa (KEDASA) estimate the total population at about 40,000 when students, researchers and short-term business travellers are included.
When attacks on foreigners in South Africa began to escalate, Diaspora Affairs Principal Secretary Roseline Njogu directed officials to fast-track emergency travel documents for Kenyans who lost their passports and other identification documents during the attacks.
The High Commission was also directed to establish temporary safe houses for displaced Kenyans awaiting repatriation flights.
Kenya has joined several African countries, including Nigeria, Ghana and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in organising government-assisted evacuations for citizens affected by the unrest.
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the nation to announce a raft of new measures to crackdown on illegal migration as tensions rise over anti-foreigner marches and frustrations about high unemployment.
These steps include jailing employers who hire undocumented workers, setting up dedicated courts to speed up deportations of undocumented migrants and having a register with biometric data “for every person in the country” to stamp out identity theft.
But he also warned South Africans not to take the law into their own hands.
Several African nations have been organising the evacuation of some of their nationals as fears of violence grow.
Anti-migrant groups are demanding undocumented migrants leave the country – and have set 30 June as the deadline.
Last weekend, several hundred African migrants fled their homes in the Overberg region of South Africa’s Western Cape Province after reports of door-to-door intimidation, as well as the deaths of two Mozambicans in Mossel Bay.
Many sought shelter in community halls, at the beach or nearby mountains. Some have opted to return home – and this weekend another group of around 140 people boarded buses to Malawi and Mozambique.
In Durban, foreigners have been camping outside the city’s home affairs department for several weeks, saying they fear for their lives.
Ramaphosa acknowledged illegal migration was putting unfair pressure on South Africa’s public services – and that the issue needed to be addressed by his government.
But he warned against vigilantism:
“I must make it clear that only the authorised government officials may act against violations of the law, including violation of our immigration laws.
“No other person is allowed, for example, to confront someone in the street to demand proof of nationality.”
Some analysts have suggested the resurgence of anti-migrant sentiment in South Africa could be linked to local elections scheduled for November.
The president said the authorities would not allow groups to use legitimate concerns “to destabilise” the country by inciting violence.
“We will act against forces who are exploiting the concerns of our people about illegal immigration to further their own political, personal or criminal agendas,” he said, cautioning against social media campaigns that spread misinformation and lies about foreign nationals.
He also told South Africans there was “no space for xenophobia, racism, sexism, Afrophobia or any other forms of intolerance in South Africa”.
“Our country – like many others throughout history – is a product of migration.
It is the reason for our diversity and contributes to our vibrancy,” he said.
South Africa is home to more than three million foreigners, about 5% of the population, according to official figures – but there are believed to be many more without papers.
During his 30-minute speech, the president pointed to the scale of the problem and how “illegal migration routes increasingly overlap with organised crime”.
“In the past year alone, the Border Management Authority managed to intercept and stop over 450,000 people who were attempting to enter South Africa illegally,” he said.
Ramaphosa explained how unscrupulous employers pay undocumented migrants well below the minimum wage and “merely” pay a fine if caught.
Plans had been launched to hire 10,000 inspectors to crackdown on such businesses and those found guilty would fail tougher penalties “including imprisonment”, he said.
Illegal migration was also often enabled by corruption, the president acknowledged, explaining how officials sold documents.
The authorities would discontinue green ID books “which have enabled identity theft by undocumented immigrants and criminal syndicates”, with the president adding it was part of plans towards having a digital ID for everyone in the future.
Another imminent change announced was the relocation of refugee reception centres to border posts.
Ramaphosa made reference to the anger expressed by many communities about the number of foreign nationals running small grocery stores in townships, known as spaza shops.
These have often been targeted during waves of xenophobic violence that have erupted in South Africa over the last few decades.
Ramaphosa said efforts would be made to ensure all informal shops were properly registered by the small business development department.
Quotas were also to be set for “employment of foreign nationals in any economic sector or occupational category”, he said.
South Africa has one of the highest rates of unemployment in the world at around 33% – mainly affecting young people.
Ramaphosa said he would be sending envoys to other African countries to outline these new measures – adding peace and economic growth elsewhere were important factors.
And he ended on a positive note, saying he hoped the changes would help a build a “secure, lawful, compassionate and prosperous” country.
“South Africa has overcome far greater challenges than this. We have overcome division.
We have overcome conflict. We have overcome injustice. We will overcome this challenge too.”
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