South Africa's government is facing increased scrutiny over its management of migration, amid rising anti-migrant tensions and competing concerns about citizens' demands and migrants' rights. The country's 2026 Five-Point Plan for managing migration emphasizes the need for cooperation with regional and continental counterparts. This approach acknowledges that migration is a transnational issue, requiring a collaborative response. For years, South Africa has called for regional cooperation in migration management, recognizing its importance in addressing the complexities of migration.
The 1999 White Paper on International Migration and the 2017 White Paper on International Migration highlight the significance of international, bilateral, and multilateral cooperation in addressing migration. The 2026 Five-Point Plan builds on these policy frameworks, explicitly emphasizing cooperation with continental counterparts in managing migration. The plan's fifth pillar focuses on cooperation with countries of origin and transit, coordination of deportation and repatriation, information and intelligence sharing, and engagement with African counterparts on migration patterns and causes.
Existing protocols and frameworks guide cooperation among countries, including the SADC Protocol on the Facilitation of Movement of Persons and the Migration Policy Framework for Africa. However, the fifth pillar of the 2026 Five-Point Plan seeks to address current migration-management challenges, such as irregular entry, deportation, and repatriation. To achieve tangible results, regional cooperation must move beyond diplomatic engagements and high-level agreements towards a structured and functional implementation mechanism.
Malawians facing xenophobia in South Africa have been repatriated, with around 10,000 nationals gathering at a migration transit camp in Sherwood, Durban. The crisis highlights the need for effective cooperation between countries of origin and destination. South Africa has long engaged with countries of origin and transit through bi-national commissions and other bilateral mechanisms, facilitated by the department of international relations and cooperation.
To implement the fifth pillar of the 2026 Five-Point Plan, South Africa should strengthen existing bilateral migration and border-management mechanisms, including Bilateral Joint Technical Committees. Migration-management issues should become a more systematic part of their work, connecting domestic border coordination with counterpart agencies across borders. This approach can help build a coordinated continental response to migration management.
The International Organisation for Migration's concept of Integrated Border Management emphasizes inter-agency and international cooperation, integrated information systems, and coordinated procedures. Cooperation should go beyond joint patrols and periodic operations towards a more integrated system of information sharing, joint risk assessment, and coordinated operational planning. The European Union's European Border Surveillance System provides a model for information exchange and operational cooperation between national border authorities.
Effective cooperation under the 2026 Five-Point Plan requires a structured and functional implementation mechanism, moving beyond policy commitments towards practical, coordinated, and measurable action. By strengthening regional cooperation and building on existing frameworks, South Africa can address the complexities of migration management and develop a more comprehensive response to the challenges posed by irregular migration, deportation, and repatriation.
Key points
- South Africa's 2026 Five-Point Plan emphasizes cooperation with countries of origin and transit to address irregular migration, deportation, and readmission.
- The plan's fifth pillar focuses on cooperation, coordination, information sharing, and engagement with African counterparts on migration patterns and causes.
- Effective implementation requires a structured and functional regional and continental implementation mechanism, moving beyond diplomatic engagements and high-level agreements.
