Migration in South and Southern Africa potx

Edited by Pieter Kok, Derik Gelderblom, John O. Oucho & Johan van Zyl
Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za
Compiled฀by฀the฀Integrated฀Regional฀and฀Rural฀Development฀Research฀Programme,฀
Human฀Sciences฀Research฀Council฀
Published฀by฀HSRC฀Press
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©฀2006฀Human฀Sciences฀Research฀Council
First฀published฀2006
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Contents
List฀of฀figures฀and฀tables฀฀฀v
Frequently฀used฀acronyms฀and฀abbreviations฀฀฀ix
Chapter฀1฀ Introduction฀
Pieter฀Kok,฀Derik฀Gelderblom฀and฀Johan฀van฀Zyl฀฀฀1
PART฀I:฀ The฀context฀of฀migration฀from฀a฀continental฀and฀regional฀perspective
Chapter฀2฀ Internal฀and฀international฀migration฀within฀Africa฀
Aderanti฀Adepoju฀฀฀26
Chapter฀3฀ Cross-border฀migration฀and฀regional฀initiatives฀in฀
฀
managing฀migration฀in฀southern฀Africa฀
John฀O.฀Oucho฀฀฀47
Chapter฀4฀ Historical฀background฀to฀South฀African฀migration฀
Marie฀Wentzel฀and฀Kholadi฀Tlabela฀฀฀71
Chapter฀5฀ Migration฀in฀South฀Africa฀in฀comparative฀perspective฀
Barbara฀A.฀Anderson฀฀฀97
PART฀II:฀ Findings฀from฀South฀African฀survey฀data฀
Chapter฀6฀ Migration฀and฀health฀in฀South฀Africa฀
Niël฀Roux฀and฀Louis฀van฀Tonder฀฀฀120
Chapter฀7฀ Evaluating฀the฀2001–02฀HSRC฀Migration฀Survey฀
Johan฀van฀Zyl฀฀฀147
Chapter฀8฀ Contemporary฀South฀African฀migration฀patterns฀and฀intentions
฀ Marie฀Wentzel,฀Johan฀Viljoen฀and฀Pieter฀Kok฀฀171
Chapter฀9฀ Migrant฀motivations฀and฀capacities฀in฀relation฀to฀key฀migration฀streams฀
Catherine฀Cross฀฀฀205
Chapter฀10฀ The฀limits฀and฀possibilities฀of฀migrant฀networks
฀ Derik฀Gelderblom฀and฀Whynie฀Adams฀฀฀227
Chapter฀11฀ Migration฀intentions฀in฀South฀Africa฀and฀elsewhere฀

Gordon฀F.฀De฀Jong฀and฀Michele฀Steinmetz฀฀฀249
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PART฀III:฀A฀theoretical฀synthesis
Chapter฀12฀ Towards฀a฀synthetic฀model฀of฀migration฀
Derik฀Gelderblom฀฀฀268
APPENDICES
Appendix฀A฀ The฀history฀and฀methodology฀of฀the฀HSRC฀surveys฀
Pieter฀Kok,฀Johan฀van฀Zyl฀and฀Jacques฀Pietersen฀฀฀292
Appendix฀B฀ GIS฀as฀a฀tool฀in฀migration฀research฀
Gina฀Weir-Smith฀and฀S’bonisile฀Zama฀฀฀307
Appendix฀C฀ Applying฀the฀multiregional฀projection฀model฀using฀census฀migration฀data:฀
฀
a฀theoretical฀basis
Jacques฀Ledent฀and฀Sulaiman฀Bah฀฀฀327
Appendix฀D฀ Provincial฀levels฀of฀satisfaction฀with฀service฀delivery:฀
฀
an฀analytical฀framework฀based฀on฀interprovincial฀migration
Oumar฀Bouare฀and฀Johanna฀Nkau฀฀฀343
About฀the฀authors฀฀฀355
Index฀฀฀359
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฀v
List฀of฀figures฀and฀tables
Figures
Figure฀1.1฀The฀world’s฀foreign-born฀population฀฀฀2
Figure฀1.2฀Global฀net฀migration฀patterns฀฀฀3
Figure฀1.3฀Specific฀policies฀on฀immigration฀฀฀4
Figure฀1.4฀Some฀specific฀policies฀on฀emigration฀฀฀5
Figure฀1.5฀The฀world:฀urban฀and฀rural฀populations฀(actual฀and฀projected)฀฀฀11
Figure฀1.6฀Trends฀in฀urbanisation฀levels฀of฀selected฀southern฀African฀countries฀(actual฀and

฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀projected)฀฀฀11
Figure฀1.7฀Government฀policies฀on฀internal฀migration฀into฀metropolitan฀areas฀in฀the฀more
฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀developed฀regions฀of฀the฀world฀฀฀12
Figure฀1.8฀Government฀policies฀on฀internal฀migration฀into฀metropolitan฀areas฀in฀the฀
less฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀developed฀regions฀of฀the฀world฀฀฀13
Figure฀3.1฀Average฀number฀of฀people฀employed฀on฀South฀African฀mines฀by฀country฀of฀origin,
฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀1986–1992฀฀฀58
Figure฀5.1฀Comparative฀growth฀rates฀per฀1฀000฀population฀฀฀103
Figure฀5.2฀Estimated฀net฀migration฀rates฀per฀1฀000฀population฀฀฀103
Figure฀5.3฀Legal฀immigration,฀emigration฀and฀net฀migration฀rates฀for฀South฀Africa฀
฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀per฀1฀000฀population฀฀฀104
Figure฀5.4฀Net฀migrants฀to฀South฀Africa,฀from฀residual฀method฀and฀from฀official฀data฀฀฀105
Figure฀5.5฀Percentage฀of฀populations฀in฀urban฀areas฀฀฀108
Figure฀5.6฀Growth฀rates฀of฀urban฀populations฀(per฀1฀000฀population)฀฀฀109
Figure฀5.7฀Estimated฀rates฀of฀net฀rural–urban฀migrations฀(per฀1฀000฀population)฀฀฀110
Figure฀5.8฀Percentages฀of฀Africans฀and฀of฀non-Africans฀in฀urban฀areas฀฀฀111
Figure฀5.9฀Livings฀conditions฀for฀various฀South฀African฀groups฀in฀1994฀and฀1999฀฀฀112
Figure฀B1฀Intra-provincial฀migration฀in฀the฀Eastern฀Cape,฀2001฀฀฀308
Figure฀B2฀Intra-provincial฀migration฀movements฀towards฀the฀Cape฀magisterial฀district,฀2001฀฀฀310
Figure฀B3฀Intra-provincial฀migration฀to฀Gauteng,฀2001฀฀฀311
Figure฀B4฀Migrants฀to฀Gauteng฀by฀province฀of฀origin,฀2001฀฀฀312
Figure฀B5฀Comparison฀of฀employment฀and฀unemployment฀in฀1996฀and฀2001฀฀฀312
Figure฀B6฀Inter-provincial฀migration฀to฀KwaZulu-Natal,฀2001฀฀฀313
Figure฀B7฀Inter-provincial฀migration฀to฀the฀Western฀Cape,฀2001฀฀฀314
Figure฀B8฀Migrants฀to฀Western฀Cape฀by฀province฀of฀origin,฀2001฀฀฀314

Figure฀B9฀Inter-provincial฀migration฀to฀Gauteng,฀KwaZulu-Natal฀and฀Western฀Cape,฀2001฀฀฀315
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vi฀฀
Figure฀B10฀Comparing฀inter-provincial฀migration฀in฀Gauteng,฀2001฀฀฀316
Figure฀B11฀Copying฀features฀from฀one฀layer฀to฀another฀฀฀318
Figure฀B12฀Example฀of฀an฀origin฀table฀with฀all฀the฀calculated฀fields฀฀฀319
Figure฀B13฀Example฀of฀a฀flow฀table฀฀฀320
Figure฀B14฀Example฀of฀data฀directories฀฀฀321
Figure฀B15฀Example฀of฀opening฀files฀in฀Flowmap฀฀฀321
Figure฀B16฀People฀flows฀from฀selected฀magisterial฀districts฀to฀East฀London,฀2001฀฀฀322
Figure฀B17฀Redrawing฀or฀erasing฀the฀screen฀฀฀323
Figure฀B18฀Migration฀flows฀from฀selected฀magisterial฀districts฀to฀East฀London,฀2001฀฀฀324
Tables
Table฀1.1฀Selected฀southern฀African฀countries’฀immigrant฀populations฀฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀(international฀migrant฀stock)฀฀฀9
Table฀1.2฀Indicators฀of฀spatial฀population฀distribution฀for฀selected฀southern฀African฀countries฀฀฀9
Table฀3.1฀Typology฀of฀current฀international฀migration฀in฀southern฀Africa,฀
฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀by฀typical฀characteristics฀and฀country฀of฀origin/destination฀฀฀50
Table฀3.2฀Total฀population,฀migrant฀stock฀and฀emigration฀and฀migration฀policies฀in฀
฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀southern฀African฀countries฀1990–2000฀฀฀53
Table฀3.3฀Sample฀of฀immigrants฀to฀South฀Africa฀by฀country฀of฀origin฀and฀country฀
฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀of฀previous฀residence฀(weighted฀population฀figures)฀฀฀54
Table฀3.4฀Employment฀on฀South฀African฀gold฀mines฀by฀country฀of฀origin฀1986–1992฀฀฀
58
Table฀3.5฀Refugees฀and฀asylum฀seekers฀in฀southern฀Africa฀by฀origin฀and฀host฀country,฀2001฀฀฀61
Table฀4.1฀Numbers฀of฀Africans฀in฀urban฀areas฀between฀1914฀and฀1960฀฀฀
84

Table฀6.1฀Health฀outcomes฀as฀considered฀by฀migration฀phase฀฀฀
122
Table฀6.2฀Frequency฀distribution฀of฀respondents฀by฀migration฀status฀and฀
฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀selected฀socio-demographic฀characteristics฀฀฀127
Table฀6.3฀Self-rated฀health฀status฀฀฀
128
Table฀6.4฀Percentages฀indicating฀knowledge฀of฀having฀contracted฀specific฀diseases฀฀฀
129
Table฀6.5฀Primary฀reason฀for฀move฀to฀current฀place฀of฀residence฀฀฀
130
Table฀6.6฀Pre-migration฀knowledge฀of฀health฀and฀public฀services,฀฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀by฀socio-demographic฀characteristics฀฀฀131
Table฀6.7฀Migrants฀indicating฀improvement฀in฀specific฀health฀indicators฀฀฀
133
Table฀6.8฀Percentage฀of฀migrants฀indicating฀sickness฀before฀and฀after฀moving฀฀฀
135
Table฀6.9฀Logistic฀regression฀analysis฀for฀self-rating฀of฀health฀฀฀136
Table฀6.10฀Logistic฀regression฀analysis฀for฀knowledge฀of฀health฀and฀public฀services฀
฀
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀before฀previous฀move฀฀฀138
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฀vii
Table฀6.11฀Logistic฀regression฀analysis฀for฀specific฀health฀indicators฀฀฀139
Table฀7.1฀HSRC฀Migration฀Survey:฀total฀non-response฀rates฀by฀population฀group฀฀฀
148
Table฀7.2฀HSRC฀Migration฀
Survey:฀item฀non-response฀for฀monthly฀income฀฀฀148
Table฀8.1฀Cross-border฀migrants฀by฀country฀of฀origin฀(last฀move฀only)฀฀฀
175

Table฀8.2฀Employment฀status฀of฀various฀migrant฀categories฀฀฀
176
Table฀8.3฀Reasons฀for฀not฀working,฀by฀migrant฀category฀฀฀
176
Table฀8.4฀Occupational฀status,฀by฀respondent฀group฀฀฀
177
Table฀8.5฀Migrants’฀monthly฀income,฀by฀migrant฀type฀฀฀
178
Table฀8.6฀Cross-border฀migrants’฀length฀of฀stay฀in฀current฀area฀฀฀178
Table฀8.7฀Cross–border฀migrants’฀reasons฀for฀leaving฀previous฀area฀of฀residence฀฀฀
179
Table฀8.8฀Main฀reasons฀for฀moving,฀by฀migrant฀grouping฀฀฀
180
Table฀8.9฀Cross-border฀migrants’฀reasons฀for฀selecting฀destination฀area฀฀฀
181
Table฀8.10฀Cross-border฀migrants’฀prior฀knowledge฀of฀destination฀area฀฀฀
181
Table฀8.11฀Cross-border฀migrants’฀information฀sources฀on฀destination฀area฀฀฀182
Table฀8.12฀Cross-border฀migrant฀decision฀makers฀for฀move฀to฀current฀area฀฀฀
182
Table฀8.13฀Level฀of฀satisfaction฀with฀present฀circumstances,฀by฀respondent฀group฀฀฀
183
Table฀8.14฀Internal฀migrants’฀province฀of฀origin฀(before฀last฀move)฀฀฀
185
Table฀8.15฀Employment฀status฀of฀various฀migrant฀categories฀฀฀
185
Table฀8.16฀Reasons฀for฀not฀working,฀by฀migrant฀category฀฀฀185
Table฀8.17฀Distribution฀of฀occupational฀status,฀by฀respondent฀group฀฀฀
186
Table฀8.18฀Distribution฀of฀respondents’฀monthly฀income฀฀฀

187
Table฀8.19฀Internal฀migrants’฀period฀of฀stay฀in฀current฀area฀฀฀
187
Table฀8.20฀Internal฀migrants’฀reasons฀for฀leaving฀previous฀area฀฀฀
188
Table฀8.21฀Internal฀migrants’฀reasons฀for฀selecting฀destination฀area฀฀฀
188
Table฀8.22฀Respondents’฀main฀reasons฀for฀moving฀฀฀
189
Table฀8.23฀Internal฀migrants’฀prior฀knowledge฀of฀destination฀area฀฀฀190
Table฀8.24฀Internal฀migrants’฀information฀sources฀regarding฀destination฀area฀฀฀
190
Table฀8.25฀Internal฀migrant฀decision฀makers฀for฀move฀to฀current฀area฀฀฀
190
Table฀8.26฀Satisfaction฀levels฀regarding฀present฀circumstances,฀by฀respondent฀type฀฀฀
191
Table฀8.27฀Current฀province฀and฀possible฀destination฀in฀next฀five฀years฀฀฀
193
Table฀8.28฀‘Very฀likely’฀interprovincial/international฀migration฀in฀next฀five฀years฀฀฀
194
Table฀8.29฀Statistical฀details฀of฀explanatory฀variables฀used฀in฀the฀MNA฀฀฀
195
Table฀8.30฀Migration฀intentions,฀by฀age฀group฀฀฀196
Table฀8.31฀Migration฀intentions,฀by฀current฀marital฀status฀฀฀
196
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viii฀฀
Table฀8.32฀Migration฀intentions,฀by฀education฀฀฀197
Table฀8.33฀Migration฀intentions,฀by฀life฀satisfaction฀฀฀
197

Table฀8.34฀Migration฀intentions,฀by฀existence฀or฀not฀of฀migrant฀network฀฀฀
198
Table฀8.35฀Migration฀intentions,฀by฀value-expectancy฀for฀‘urban฀environment’฀฀฀
198
Table฀8.36฀Migration฀intentions,฀by฀value-expectancy฀for฀‘wealth฀and฀comfort’฀฀฀
198
Table฀8.37฀Migration฀intentions,฀by฀value-expectancy฀for฀‘affiliation฀and฀morality’฀฀฀
199
Table฀9.1฀Scale฀of฀migration฀activity฀in฀South฀Africa,฀by฀African฀population฀฀฀
208
Table฀9.2฀Year฀of฀move฀to฀area฀of฀interview฀฀฀
209
Table฀9.3฀Proportions฀of฀lifetime฀flow฀taking฀place฀via฀major฀streams฀฀฀210
Table฀9.4฀Type฀of฀area฀where฀born,฀by฀migration฀stream฀฀฀
213
Table฀9.5฀Previous฀residence฀area฀type,฀by฀migration฀stream฀฀฀
214
Table฀9.6฀Reasons฀for฀leaving฀last฀stop฀area,฀by฀migration฀stream฀฀฀
215
Table฀9.7฀Reasons฀for฀choosing฀to฀move฀to฀current฀area฀฀฀
216
Table฀9.8฀Capacities:฀demographic฀and฀economic฀factors฀฀฀218
Table฀9.9฀Economic฀activity,฀land฀access฀and฀labour฀migrancy฀฀฀
219
Table฀10.1฀Comparison฀between฀market฀and฀network฀exchange฀฀฀
229
Table฀10.2฀Immediate฀family฀or฀close฀friends฀at฀destination฀฀฀
242
Table฀10.3฀Immediate฀family฀or฀close฀friends฀at฀destination,฀by฀income฀and฀gender฀฀฀
242

Table฀10.4฀Previous฀migrations:฀main฀source฀of฀information฀about฀destination฀฀243
Table฀10.5฀Intended฀migrations:฀main฀source฀of฀information฀about฀destination฀฀฀
243
Table฀10.6฀Previous฀migrations:฀main฀source฀of฀information฀฀฀
243
Table฀10.7฀Intended฀migrations:฀main฀source฀of฀information฀฀฀
243
Table฀10.8฀Respondents’฀network฀connections฀in฀previous฀and฀current฀locations฀฀฀244
Table฀11.1฀Rural฀and฀urban฀residents’฀intentions฀to฀migrate฀฀฀
253
Table฀11.2฀Intentions฀to฀migrate,฀by฀selected฀individual฀and฀household฀฀฀
254
Table฀11.3฀Logistic฀regression฀of฀intentions฀to฀migrate:฀total฀sample฀฀฀258
Table฀11.4฀Logistic฀regression฀of฀intentions฀to฀migrate:฀rural฀and฀urban฀samples฀฀฀
262
Table฀A1฀Realisation฀results฀by฀survey฀company฀฀฀
303
Table฀A2฀Realisation฀results฀in฀terms฀of฀original฀stratification฀฀฀
303
Table฀B1฀File฀structure฀example฀฀฀
318
Table฀B2฀
Example฀of฀a฀flow฀table฀฀฀319
Table฀D1฀Questionnaire฀item฀to฀be฀used฀throughout฀the฀provinces฀of฀a฀country฀฀฀
346
Table฀D2฀Example฀of฀proportional฀distribution฀of฀respondent฀categories฀฀฀
347
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฀ix
Frequently฀used฀acronyms฀and฀฀abbreviations

BBC฀ British฀Broadcasting฀Corporation
CENPOPS฀ Centre฀for฀Population฀Studies฀(University฀of฀Pretoria)
COMESA฀ Common฀Market฀for฀Eastern฀and฀Southern฀Africa
DBSA฀ Development฀Bank฀of฀Southern฀Africa
EA฀ enumerator฀area
GIS฀ geographical฀information฀system(s)
GNP฀ gross฀national฀product
HSRC฀ Human฀Sciences฀Research฀Council฀(South฀Africa)
ILO฀ International฀Labour฀Office฀(UN)
IMP฀ International฀Migration฀Policy
IOM฀ International฀Organization฀for฀Migration
LDRs฀ less-developed฀regions฀(of฀the฀world)
MDRs฀ more-developed฀regions฀(of฀the฀world)
MIDA฀ Migration฀for฀Development฀in฀Africa
MIDSA฀ Migration฀Dialogue฀for฀Southern฀Africa
MNA฀ multivariate฀nominal-scale฀analysis
MPI฀ Migration฀Policy฀Institute
NRC฀ Native฀Recruiting฀Corporation
NEPAD฀ New฀Partnership฀for฀Africa’s฀Development
OHS฀ October฀Household฀Survey฀
PRB฀ Population฀Reference฀Bureau฀(USA)
SADC฀ Southern฀African฀Development฀Community
SADCC฀ Southern฀African฀Development฀Coordination฀Conference
SAMHS฀ South฀African฀Migration฀and฀Health฀Survey
SAMP฀ Southern฀African฀Migration฀Project
SANSA฀ South฀African฀Network฀of฀Skills฀Abroad
SDI฀ Spatial฀Development฀Initiative
Stats฀SA฀ Statistics฀South฀Africa฀
UN฀ United฀Nations
UNDP฀ United฀Nations฀Development฀Program

UNECA฀ United฀Nations฀Economic฀Commission฀for฀Africa
Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za
x฀฀
UNFPA฀ United฀Nations฀Population฀Fund
UNHCR฀ United฀Nations฀High฀Commissioner฀for฀Refugees
Unisa฀ University฀of฀South฀Africa฀
WHO฀ World฀Health฀Organization฀(UN)
WNLA฀ Witwatersrand฀Native฀Labour฀Association฀(Wenela)
ZAR฀ Zuid฀Afrikaansche฀Republiek฀
Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za
introduction฀฀
•
฀฀1
CHAPTER฀1
Introduction
Pieter฀Kok,฀Derik฀Gelderblom฀and฀Johan฀van฀Zyl
The฀tenth฀anniversary฀of฀the฀1994฀first฀democratic฀elections฀in฀South฀Africa฀was฀
an฀opportune฀time฀to฀reflect฀on฀what฀had฀–฀and฀what฀had฀not฀–฀changed฀in฀the฀
country฀since฀the฀end฀of฀apartheid.฀Grand฀Apartheid฀had฀attempted฀to฀alter฀the฀
racial฀distribution฀of฀the฀population฀through฀mechanisms฀such฀as฀an฀‘influx฀control’฀
system,฀population฀relocation฀and฀the฀creation฀of฀relatively฀dense฀settlements฀in฀the฀
former฀homeland฀areas.฀As฀such฀it฀had฀an฀important฀impact฀on฀patterns฀of฀internal฀
migration.฀In฀addition,฀because฀the฀permanent฀settlement฀of฀black฀people฀from฀
African฀countries฀north฀of฀South฀African฀borders฀was฀not฀allowed,฀apartheid฀also฀
changed฀patterns฀of฀international฀migration.฀One฀of฀the฀things฀we฀need฀to฀ascertain฀
therefore฀is฀how฀much฀the฀lifting฀of฀apartheid฀has฀affected฀migration฀patterns,฀both฀
internally฀and฀in฀the฀southern฀African฀region.
This฀task฀implies,฀firstly,฀that฀some฀purely฀descriptive฀research฀on฀both฀current฀and฀
past฀migration฀patterns฀in฀South฀Africa฀needs฀to฀be฀undertaken,฀investigating฀how฀
much฀migration฀occurred฀during฀the฀apartheid฀period฀and฀after฀it.฀In฀addition,฀it฀

still฀needs฀to฀be฀determined฀whether฀the฀migration฀was฀predominantly฀rural–urban฀
or฀rural–rural.฀Also฀to฀be฀considered฀is฀whether฀a฀typology฀that฀accounts฀for฀the฀
areas฀between฀rural฀and฀urban฀would฀not฀be฀more฀appropriate฀in฀the฀description฀
of฀migration฀patterns฀–฀for฀example฀one฀grading฀from฀rural,฀through฀semi-urban,฀
peri-urban,฀and฀urban฀areas฀to฀fully฀metropolitan.฀A฀greater฀understanding฀of฀the฀
historical฀context฀of฀migration฀in฀South฀Africa฀is฀thus฀needed,฀to฀achieve฀a฀more฀
nuanced฀view฀of฀the฀continuities฀and฀discontinuities฀in฀South฀African฀migration฀
฀
over฀time.
Migration฀issues฀and฀implications฀for฀policy
In฀this฀book,฀which฀deals฀largely฀with฀the฀causes฀of฀migration,฀we฀attempt฀to฀analyse฀
and฀evaluate฀both฀international฀and฀internal฀migration฀in฀South฀and฀southern฀Africa.฀
Although฀its฀policy฀and฀planning฀implications฀are฀not฀always฀obvious,฀in฀most฀cases฀
the฀individual฀chapters฀bring฀the฀issues฀involved฀clearly฀to฀the฀fore.฀Perhaps฀a฀broad-
brush฀reminder฀of฀these฀issues฀would฀be฀appropriate฀here.
International฀migration
Stories฀about฀foreign฀migrants฀–฀legal,฀illegal฀and฀asylum฀seekers฀–฀appear฀almost฀
daily฀in฀the฀news.฀Governments฀…฀note฀these฀events฀with฀alarm฀and฀grapple฀with฀
policy฀reforms฀aimed฀at฀selecting฀certain฀migrants฀and฀keeping฀out฀others.฀(Hatton฀
&฀Williamson฀2002:฀1)
This฀quotation฀from฀Hatton฀and฀Williamson฀is฀a฀useful฀summary฀of฀the฀impact฀that฀
international฀migration฀often฀has฀on฀public฀perceptions฀and฀hence฀on฀legislated฀
Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za
2฀฀
•฀
฀migration฀in฀south฀and฀southern฀africa
















   









migration฀policy.฀There฀seems฀to฀be฀widespread฀agreement฀that฀globalisation฀–฀
which฀is฀usually฀interpreted฀to฀mean฀the฀mobility฀of฀goods฀and฀factors฀of฀production฀
(such฀as฀labour,฀capital฀and฀information)฀across฀international฀borders฀–฀has฀been฀
on฀the฀rise฀since฀the฀Second฀World฀War฀and฀has฀currently฀reached฀unprecedented฀
heights.฀Despite฀the฀tight฀constraints฀of฀tough฀immigration฀policies฀that฀almost฀
certainly฀suppressed฀a฀vast฀amount฀of฀potential฀movement฀of฀people฀(Hatton฀&฀
Williamson฀2002),฀world฀migration฀has฀nevertheless฀increased฀rapidly฀during฀฀
recent฀years.
Figure฀1.1,฀obtained฀from฀BBC฀Online฀(2004),฀and฀based฀on฀data฀generated฀by฀the฀

International฀Organization฀for฀Migration฀(IOM),฀shows฀that฀in฀1965฀there฀were฀
an฀estimated฀75฀million฀migrants฀(that฀is,฀people฀born฀in฀a฀country฀other฀than฀the฀
one฀in฀which฀they฀were฀residing฀in฀1965),฀representing฀two฀per฀cent฀of฀the฀world฀
population.฀By฀2002฀this฀number฀had฀grown฀to฀175฀million฀(almost฀three฀per฀cent฀
of฀the฀population),฀giving฀an฀average฀annual฀growth฀rate฀in฀the฀‘foreign-born’฀
population฀of฀2.3฀per฀cent฀–฀as฀compared฀with฀the฀average฀annual฀growth฀of฀
฀
1.8฀per฀cent฀in฀the฀total฀world฀population.฀
Sander฀and฀Maimbo฀(2003:฀10)฀confirm฀these฀figures:฀
Worldwide,฀one฀ of฀ every฀ 35฀ people,฀an฀ estimated฀ 175฀ million,฀ live฀ outside฀ their฀
country฀of฀origin,฀up฀from฀75฀million฀in฀1965.฀Migration฀is฀projected฀to฀grow฀at฀an฀
annual฀rate฀of฀2฀to฀3฀percent.
The฀monotonic฀and฀rapid฀increase฀in฀the฀migrant฀population฀has฀been฀a฀cause฀
for฀concern฀in฀most฀countries.฀The฀governments฀of฀‘net฀receiving’฀countries฀are฀
concerned,฀among฀other฀things,฀about฀the฀number฀of฀work-seekers฀added฀annually฀to฀
their฀already฀nearly฀saturated฀labour฀markets,฀while฀the฀governments฀of฀‘net฀sending’฀
countries฀tend฀to฀be฀concerned฀mainly฀about฀the฀loss฀of฀skills฀(the฀‘brain฀drain’).
Figure฀1.1฀The฀world’s฀foreign-born฀population฀
Source:฀BBC฀Online฀2004
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introduction฀฀
•
฀฀3
Figure฀1.2,฀also฀obtained฀from฀BBC฀Online฀(2004)฀and฀based฀on฀data฀generated฀
by฀the฀United฀Nations,฀shows฀the฀net฀migration฀flows฀between฀countries฀during฀
the฀period฀1995–2000.฀While฀it฀is฀clear฀that฀most฀industrialised฀countries฀were฀net฀
receivers฀of฀international฀migrants฀in฀that฀period,฀some฀developing฀countries฀(such฀
as฀Argentina฀in฀South฀America,฀and฀Chad฀in฀Africa)฀also฀received฀more฀immigrants฀
than฀the฀number฀of฀emigrants฀that฀they฀lost.
1

฀
In฀Africa,฀the฀Democratic฀Republic฀of฀the฀Congo฀had฀the฀greatest฀net฀loss฀of฀
migrants,฀in฀absolute฀terms,฀during฀the฀period฀1995–2000.฀Although฀South฀Africa฀
also฀experienced฀a฀net฀emigration,฀it฀was฀a฀much฀lower฀percentage฀of฀the฀country’s฀
total฀population.฀
Africa฀is฀by฀far฀the฀world’s฀poorest฀continent,฀but฀it฀has฀generated฀remarkably฀few฀
migrants฀to฀the฀industrial฀countries,฀despite฀the฀massive฀gains฀that฀this฀would฀seem฀
likely฀to฀bring฀to฀such฀migrants.฀
True,฀migration฀ pressure,฀ as฀ reflected฀ by฀ illegal฀ flows฀ between฀ North฀ Africa฀ and฀
southern฀Europe,฀has฀often฀hit฀the฀headlines.฀Also,฀the฀share฀of฀Africans฀in฀legal฀
immigration฀ to฀ the฀ US฀ has฀ increased.฀Yet,฀real฀ incomes฀ in฀ Africa฀ are฀ but฀ a฀ tiny฀
fraction฀of฀those฀in฀Europe฀and฀North฀America฀so฀the฀incentive฀to฀emigrate฀should฀
be฀huge.฀Indeed,฀the฀gaps฀are฀many฀times฀larger฀than฀those฀that฀gave฀rise฀to฀the฀mass฀
emigrations฀from฀Europe฀a฀century฀ago.฀(Hatton฀&฀Williamson฀2002:฀17)฀
This฀apparent฀paradox฀can฀be฀explained฀largely฀by฀the฀fact฀that฀the฀poorest฀people฀
have฀to฀overcome฀considerable฀obstacles฀to฀their฀potential฀migration฀(see฀Gelderblom฀
in฀Chapter฀12฀of฀this฀volume).฀Also฀very฀important฀are฀the฀immigration฀policies฀
Figure฀1.2
฀Global฀net฀migration฀patterns
Source:฀United฀Nations฀2002
Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za
4฀฀
•฀
฀migration฀in฀south฀and฀southern฀africa
of฀industrial฀countries,฀which฀stress฀family฀reunification฀or฀skills.฀These฀impose฀
huge฀barriers฀to฀potential฀African฀migrants฀who฀would฀otherwise฀have฀moved฀
to฀the฀industrial฀countries,฀in฀response฀to฀the฀large฀income฀difference฀(Hatton฀
&฀Williamson฀2002).฀In฀its฀latest฀report฀on฀globalisation,฀the฀United฀Nations฀
International฀Labour฀Office฀(ILO฀2004)฀confirms฀and฀generalises฀these฀conclusions.
It฀should฀be฀noted฀that฀a฀strong฀polarisation฀of฀views฀exists฀regarding฀the฀desirability฀

of฀extending฀opportunities฀for฀international฀migration.฀While฀migration฀does฀
have฀considerable฀potential฀benefits฀–฀both฀for฀the฀migrants฀themselves฀and฀for฀
their฀countries฀of฀origin฀and฀destination฀–฀it฀should฀be฀recognised฀that฀there฀are฀
also฀‘potential฀costs฀such฀as฀the฀displacement฀of฀local฀workers,฀the฀disruption฀of฀
labour฀market฀institutions฀and฀social฀protection฀systems,฀and฀the฀weakening฀of฀
social฀cohesion’฀(ILO฀2004:฀97).฀As฀the฀ILO฀correctly฀points฀out,฀‘there฀are฀costs฀and฀
benefits฀involved฀that฀should฀be฀seriously฀weighed’฀(2004:฀97).
2฀
In฀the฀remainder฀of฀this฀section฀attention฀is฀given฀to฀policy฀responses฀and฀to฀the฀
implications฀of฀some฀of฀the฀main฀forms฀of฀international฀migration.฀In฀its฀recent฀
study฀on฀population฀policies,฀the฀United฀Nations฀(2004)฀shows,฀on฀a฀country-by-
country฀basis,฀the฀evolution฀of฀government฀views฀and฀policies฀(from฀1976฀to฀2003,฀
where฀data฀are฀available)฀with฀respect฀to฀issues฀such฀as฀population฀size฀and฀growth,฀
population฀age฀structure,฀spatial฀distribution฀and฀international฀migration,฀within฀
the฀context฀of฀demographic,฀social฀and฀economic฀change.฀The฀report฀states฀that฀
levels฀of฀immigration฀were฀regarded฀as฀‘unsatisfactory’฀in฀only฀a฀small฀proportion฀of฀
developing฀countries,฀but฀a฀greater฀proportion฀of฀industrial฀countries฀viewed฀them฀
as฀problematic,฀that฀is฀being฀either฀too฀high฀(23%)฀or฀too฀low฀(10%).฀Only฀four฀
per฀cent฀of฀the฀more฀developed฀countries฀did฀not฀implement฀some฀form฀of฀policy฀
intervention฀with฀a฀view฀to฀changing฀these฀levels.฀The฀issues฀that฀governments฀of฀
industrial฀countries฀had฀with฀immigration฀in฀2003฀tended฀to฀focus฀on฀preventing฀
undocumented฀entry฀and฀other฀forms฀of฀illegal฀immigration฀(see฀Figure฀1.3).฀
Figure฀1.3฀Specific฀policies฀on฀immigration
Source:฀Calculated฀from฀United฀Nations฀2003








   


























Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za
introduction฀฀

•
฀฀5
Figure฀1.4฀Specific฀policies฀on฀emigration
Source:฀Calculated฀from฀United฀Nations฀2003
Figure฀1.4฀shows฀the฀2003฀distribution฀of฀two฀policy฀responses฀to฀emigration฀issues.฀
Concerns฀with฀high฀levels฀of฀emigration฀among฀the฀industrial฀countries฀are฀found฀
mostly฀among฀Eastern฀European฀countries฀(United฀Nations฀2003).฀
In฀…฀Africa,฀Asia฀and฀Latin฀America฀and฀the฀Caribbean,฀concerns฀with฀high฀emi-
gration฀eased฀during฀the฀ second฀half฀ of฀ the฀1990s฀and฀the฀ beginning฀of฀ the฀ 21st฀
century.฀This฀may,฀in฀part,฀reflect฀the฀growing฀recognition฀of฀the฀importance฀of฀wor-
kers’฀remittances฀for฀the฀economies฀of฀sending฀countries.฀(United฀Nations฀2003:฀15)
Types฀of฀international฀migration
Three฀main฀types฀of฀international฀migration฀are฀usually฀identified,฀namely฀
labour฀mobility,฀refugee฀movements,฀and฀more฀permanent฀migration.฀These฀are฀
summarised฀in฀the฀sections฀below.฀Undocumented฀or฀illegal฀migration฀is฀a฀subset฀of฀
each฀of฀these฀migration฀forms,฀and฀will฀be฀touched฀upon฀separately.
Labour฀mobility
In฀a฀useful฀and฀provocative฀evaluation฀of฀the฀benefits฀and฀disadvantages฀of฀labour฀
migration,฀Ellerman฀(2003:฀15)฀points฀out฀that฀although฀labour฀migrants฀are฀often฀
unskilled฀they฀often฀‘have฀some฀considerable฀entrepreneurial฀drive฀towards฀self-
betterment฀(of฀which฀the฀labour฀migration฀is฀testimony),฀some฀complement฀of฀skills,฀
and฀some฀resources฀in฀order฀to฀finance฀the฀trip฀or฀trips’.฀Sending฀countries฀therefore฀
tend฀to฀lose฀an฀important฀part฀of฀their฀human฀capital฀in฀a฀process฀frequently฀referred฀
to฀as฀the฀‘brain฀drain’.฀Labour฀migration,฀furthermore,฀tends฀to฀be฀cumulative:฀
‘Remittances฀may฀lead฀to฀more฀migration฀because฀they฀show฀that฀migration฀works,฀
they฀finance฀other฀family฀members’฀trips,฀and฀they฀show฀what฀the฀neighbors฀have฀to฀
do฀to฀“keep฀up฀with฀the฀Joneses”’฀(Ellerman฀2003:฀15–16).฀
Remittances฀from฀migrants฀are฀so฀significant฀that฀they฀outweigh฀the฀international฀
development฀aid฀flowing฀into฀developing฀countries.฀‘There฀is฀much฀concern฀about฀
the฀developmental฀impact฀of฀aid฀transfers฀from฀the฀North฀to฀the฀South,฀and฀yet,฀on฀

the฀whole,฀remittances฀are฀even฀larger฀than฀all฀aid฀transfers’฀(Ellerman฀2003:฀18).฀


  
  

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
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




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6฀฀
•฀
฀migration฀in฀south฀and฀southern฀africa
Ellerman฀concludes฀that฀‘the฀potential฀developmental฀role฀of฀remittances฀should฀be฀
an฀important฀topic฀for฀policy฀research฀and฀experimentation’฀(2003:฀18).
‘Labour’฀or฀‘work’฀migrants฀constitute฀a฀majority฀of฀all฀migrants,฀but฀it฀should฀be฀
noted฀that฀the฀debate฀on฀whether฀or฀not฀temporary฀work฀migration฀is฀generally฀
beneficial฀has฀yet฀to฀be฀concluded.฀
The฀ILO’s฀study฀(2004)฀highlights฀the฀widespread฀benefits฀of฀labour฀migration,฀not฀
only฀for฀sending฀countries฀but฀also฀for฀the฀countries฀receiving฀labour฀migrants:
Most฀industrialised฀countries฀have฀ageing฀populations฀that฀are฀tending฀to฀decline,฀
while฀most฀developing฀countries฀have฀young฀and฀growing฀populations.฀Many฀of฀

the฀problems฀of฀ an฀ ageing฀population,฀such฀as฀a฀declining฀labour฀ force฀and฀the฀
difficulties฀ of฀ financing฀ social฀ security฀ in฀ the฀ face฀ of฀ rising฀ dependency฀ ratios,฀
could฀be฀attenuated฀by฀increased฀immigration฀on฀terms฀which฀respect฀the฀rights฀
of฀ migrant฀ workers.฀ More฀ generally,฀ global฀ labour฀ productivity฀ would฀ increase฀
through฀this฀process฀since฀the฀migration฀would฀be฀from฀low-productivity,฀surplus-
labour฀ countries฀ to฀ higher-productivity฀ ones.฀ This฀ would฀ benefit฀ not฀ only฀ the฀
individual฀migrants฀involved฀but฀also฀their฀home฀countries฀through฀remittances,฀
as฀well฀as฀the฀transfer฀of฀skills฀and฀the฀stimulus฀given฀to฀business฀activity฀by฀the฀
diaspora.฀(ILO฀2004:฀96)
However,฀not฀all฀economists฀share฀the฀above฀optimism฀about฀the฀benefits฀of฀labour฀
migration:
There฀ is฀ general฀ agreement฀ among฀ observers฀ that฀ by฀ itself฀ labour฀ migration฀ is฀
unlikely฀to฀significantly฀improve฀the฀development฀potential฀of฀a฀sending฀country.฀
While฀individual฀migrants฀and฀their฀families฀tend฀to฀gain฀from฀migration฀(in฀terms฀
of฀greater฀economic฀security),฀the฀same฀cannot฀be฀ claimed฀ for฀ the฀ countries,฀as฀
a฀ whole.฀ There฀is฀ little฀ evidence฀ to฀ indicate฀ that฀ labour฀ migration฀ and฀ flows฀ of฀
remittances฀have฀generated฀sustained฀growth.฀(Abella,฀quoted฀in฀Ellerman฀2003:฀
24)
The฀controversy฀does฀not฀end฀there,฀though:
There฀is฀nothing฀more฀permanent฀than฀‘temporary’฀migration.
This฀quip฀is฀probably฀indicative฀of฀the฀many฀negative฀perceptions฀surrounding฀
‘temporary’฀migration,฀yet฀there฀is฀some฀truth฀in฀it.฀Most฀labour฀migrants฀from฀
developing฀countries฀probably฀want฀to฀return฀to฀their฀home฀country฀before฀
retirement,฀possibly฀to฀use฀their฀capital฀and฀knowledge฀in฀the฀home฀country,฀thus฀
perhaps฀contributing฀to฀economic฀development฀there.฀But,฀as฀Ellerman฀(2003)฀
correctly฀points฀out,฀many฀find฀it฀difficult฀to฀return฀home฀once฀they฀have฀become฀
established฀in฀the฀host฀country.฀In฀other฀cases,฀members฀of฀a฀family฀might฀move฀
away฀to฀find฀work฀elsewhere,฀‘not฀as฀a฀temporary฀measure฀to฀acquire฀capital฀or฀
knowledge,฀but฀as฀a฀career฀choice฀that฀will฀increase฀and฀diversify฀the฀income฀of฀the฀
whole฀family’฀(Ellerman฀2003:฀15).

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introduction฀฀
•
฀฀7
Ellerman฀(2003:฀17)฀argues฀that฀migration฀is฀nothing฀but฀a฀safety฀valve฀that฀relieves฀
the฀pressure฀of฀a฀problem฀–฀such฀as฀unemployment฀–฀without฀resolving฀the฀problem฀
itself.฀Remittances฀are฀sometimes฀regarded฀as฀having฀a฀pro-development฀multiplier฀
effect฀(even฀if฀spent฀non-productively),฀but฀they฀can฀have฀negative฀multiplier฀effects฀
in฀times฀of฀economic฀recession.฀They฀also฀do฀not฀lead฀to฀sustainable฀development,฀
that฀is,฀development฀that฀is฀not฀reliant฀on฀remittances.฀Furthermore,฀remittances฀are฀
largely฀driven฀by฀recent฀migration:฀‘As฀migrants฀spend฀more฀time฀in฀the฀host฀country฀
and฀adjust,฀remittances฀fall’฀(Ellerman฀2003:฀22).฀Therefore,฀although฀remittances฀
can฀jump-start฀development฀they฀should฀not฀be฀expected฀to฀‘supply฀the฀ongoing฀fuel’฀
(Ellerman฀2003:฀24).
Sander฀and฀Maimbo฀(2003:฀1)฀indicate,฀though,฀that฀money฀transfers:฀
have฀filled฀a฀gap฀left฀by฀inadequate฀financial฀infrastructure฀in฀Africa,฀a฀structural฀
weakness฀that฀affects฀not฀only฀the฀flow฀of฀remittances฀and฀their฀channels,฀but฀also฀
the฀options฀for฀use฀and฀investment฀of฀the฀funds.฀Because฀financial฀services฀typically฀
do฀not฀reach฀into฀the฀rural฀areas฀of฀the฀continent,฀many฀low-income฀earners฀lack฀
access฀to฀formal฀transfer฀services.
They฀also฀show,฀as฀indicated฀in฀Box฀1.1฀on฀page฀8,฀that฀‘although฀remittances฀
and฀related฀aspects฀of฀migration฀and฀financial฀services฀are฀similar฀in฀some฀ways฀
throughout฀the฀developing฀world,฀sub-Saharan฀Africa฀is฀in฀other฀respects฀unique’฀
(Sander฀&฀Maimbo฀2003:฀1).
The฀last฀word฀on฀this฀contentious฀issue฀has฀therefore฀not฀been฀spoken.฀Despite฀the฀
controversy,฀it฀is฀clear฀that฀remittances฀to฀developing฀countries฀from฀temporary
฀
international฀labour฀migration฀not฀only฀benefit฀households฀and฀countries฀at฀origin,฀
they฀have฀also฀‘far฀outpaced฀migration’฀since฀the฀beginning฀of฀the฀1990’s฀(cf.฀Sander฀
&฀Maimbo฀2003:10).฀For฀example,฀remittances฀are฀of฀crucial฀economic฀importance฀

to฀many฀African฀households฀and฀nations,฀‘helping฀to฀stabilize฀irregular฀incomes฀and฀
to฀build฀human฀and฀social฀capital.฀Remittance฀receivers฀are฀typically฀better฀off฀than฀
their฀peers฀who฀lack฀this฀source฀of฀income.฀At฀the฀national฀level,฀remittances฀have฀a฀
substantial฀effect฀on฀the฀balance฀of฀payments฀and฀on฀foreign฀exchange฀revenues฀in฀
Egypt,฀Lesotho,฀and฀other฀countries’฀(Sander฀and฀Maimbo฀2003:1).
Refugee฀movements
As฀ is฀ the฀ case฀ with฀ work฀ migrants,฀ asylum฀ seekers฀ are฀ reluctant฀ migrants฀ who฀
generally฀want฀to฀return฀home.฀When฀they฀do,฀it฀is฀often฀to฀a฀developing฀country,฀
frequently฀one฀ravaged฀by฀conflict.฀(Nicholson฀2002:฀8)
Coerced฀or฀forced฀migration฀is฀not฀something฀new฀in฀Africa.฀From฀the฀17th฀
to฀the฀19th฀century฀large฀numbers฀of฀slaves฀travelled฀across฀the฀Atlantic฀to฀the฀
Americas฀(Hatton฀&฀Williamson฀2002).฀‘More฀recently฀Africa฀has฀become฀famous฀
for฀its฀refugees.฀While฀Africa฀accounts฀for฀a฀little฀more฀than฀a฀tenth฀of฀the฀worlds฀
population,฀it฀typically฀accounts฀for฀more฀than฀a฀third฀of฀the฀world’s฀stock฀of฀
refugees฀living฀in฀foreign฀countries’฀(Hatton฀&฀Williamson฀2002:฀18).
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8฀฀
•฀
฀migration฀in฀south฀and฀southern฀africa
Box฀1.1฀Unique฀aspects฀of฀remittances฀in฀sub-Saharan฀Africa
•฀ Migration฀is฀intraregional฀and฀domestic฀as฀well฀as฀short-term฀and฀seasonal.
•฀ Officially฀recorded฀remittance฀flows฀are฀artificially฀low,฀reflecting฀under-reporting฀of฀flows฀through฀
formal฀channels฀and฀high฀flows฀through฀informal฀channels.
•฀ Officially฀recorded฀flows฀to฀Africa฀have฀not฀kept฀pace฀with฀those฀to฀other฀developing฀regions,฀despite฀
growing฀migration฀(intraregional฀and฀international).
•฀ Trust฀in฀informal฀remittance฀channels฀is฀eroding฀in฀some฀areas.
•฀ Demand฀is฀growing฀for฀services฀to฀accompany฀or฀replace฀transfers฀of฀funds฀(for฀example,฀delivery฀of฀
goods฀to฀families฀back฀home).
•฀ Weak฀financial฀systems฀provide฀limited฀services,฀especially฀in฀rural฀areas,฀reducing฀access฀to฀financial฀
services฀and฀products฀such฀as฀savings฀accounts฀and฀mortgages.

•฀ Regulation฀of฀financial฀services฀is฀restrictive.
฀
Source:฀Sander฀&฀Maimbo฀2003:฀1
African฀refugees฀are฀often฀found฀in฀rural฀parts฀of฀bordering฀states฀where฀they฀
experience฀even฀greater฀deprivation฀than฀they฀did฀at฀home฀(Hatton฀&฀Williamson฀
2002:฀18).฀In฀Chapter฀4฀of฀this฀book,฀Wentzel฀and฀Tlabela฀point฀out฀that฀the฀vast฀
majority฀of฀South฀Africa’s฀refugee฀population฀is฀Mozambican฀–฀as฀a฀result฀of฀the฀civil฀
war฀in฀their฀home฀country฀during฀the฀1980s.฀The฀previous฀South฀African฀government฀
at฀first฀refused฀to฀recognise฀these฀Mozambican฀refugees,฀thereby฀depriving฀them฀
of฀international฀assistance,฀which฀forced฀thousands฀of฀them฀to฀become฀(illegally)฀
economically฀active฀in฀their฀host฀country.฀It฀is฀in฀this฀context฀that฀it฀should฀be฀
remembered฀that฀the฀skills฀and฀other฀benefits฀that฀labour฀migrants฀bring฀when฀they฀
return฀home฀are฀needed฀in฀their฀home฀countries.฀‘This฀is฀a฀strong฀argument฀(though฀
none฀should฀be฀needed)฀for฀allowing฀refugees฀to฀work,฀and฀to฀obtain฀capital,฀skills฀
and฀ideas฀for฀their฀return,฀as฀work฀migrants฀do’฀(Nicholson฀2002).
More฀permanent฀migration
While฀labour฀migration฀is฀often฀associated฀with฀lower฀skill฀levels,฀those฀people฀
involved฀in฀more฀permanent฀migration฀tend฀more฀to฀have฀higher฀skills฀as฀a฀result฀of฀
the฀greater฀economic฀return฀to฀education฀in฀industrial฀countries.฀This฀observation฀
takes฀one฀inevitably฀to฀the฀issue฀of฀the฀so-called฀brain฀drain.
The฀brain฀drain฀has฀been฀regarded฀as฀a฀problem฀since฀the฀Second฀World฀War,฀
‘crippling฀the฀activities฀of฀some฀countries,฀for฀example฀in฀sub-Sahara฀Africa฀and฀
particularly฀in฀South฀Africa’฀(Ellerman฀2003:฀30).฀Policies฀aimed฀at฀curbing฀the฀brain฀
drain฀may฀have฀side-effects฀which฀are฀just฀the฀opposite฀of฀what฀was฀desired:฀for฀
example฀legal฀restrictions฀on฀emigration฀or฀a฀‘departure฀tax’฀to฀be฀paid฀by฀receiving฀
countries฀to฀sending฀countries.฀Such฀policies฀are฀seen฀nowadays฀as฀archaic฀and฀in฀
fact฀not฀implementable.฀On฀the฀other฀hand,฀certain฀ideas,฀such฀as฀a฀transnational฀
community฀of฀scientists฀and฀engineers฀helping฀both฀the฀receiving฀and฀sending฀
countries,฀may฀now฀have฀become฀more฀feasible,฀due฀to฀globalisation.฀‘Thus฀while฀
globalisation฀might฀aggravate฀some฀old฀problems,฀it฀might฀also฀entrain฀some฀

new฀solutions’฀(Ellerman฀2003:฀31).฀Initiatives฀to฀augment฀mutually฀beneficial฀
‘transnational฀communities’
3
฀abound฀in฀countries฀that฀have฀sizable฀diasporas฀such฀฀
as฀India,฀China,฀South฀Africa,฀Argentina,฀Armenia,฀Pakistan฀and฀Israel฀(Ellerman฀
2003:฀34).฀฀
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introduction฀฀
•
฀฀9
Undocumented฀migration
Despite฀all฀the฀negative฀things฀being฀said฀about฀illegal฀migrants,฀it฀should฀be฀
appreciated฀that:
the฀ risks฀ they฀ take฀ are฀ indicative฀ of฀ their฀ determination฀ to฀ find฀ work,฀ to฀ help฀
themselves.฀Migrating฀illegally฀is฀a฀wager,฀which฀they฀might฀lose,฀but฀they฀know฀
they฀will฀definitely฀lose฀if฀they฀do฀not฀migrate.฀It฀is,฀indeed,฀economic฀risk-taking,฀
if฀of฀an฀unconventional฀kind.฀(Nicholson฀2002:฀4)
Internal฀migration฀and฀urbanisation
It฀was฀pointed฀out฀earlier฀that฀the฀level฀of฀migration฀from฀Africa฀has฀been฀
surprisingly฀low,฀and฀this฀was฀ascribed฀to฀high฀poverty฀levels฀and฀a฀consequent฀lack฀
of฀mobility.฀The฀evidence฀for฀this฀conclusion฀can฀however฀be฀regarded฀as฀somewhat฀
ambiguous฀(see,฀for฀example,฀Hatton฀&฀Williamson฀2002).฀Chapter฀12฀by฀Derik฀
Gelderblom฀provides฀an฀explanation฀for฀differences฀in฀income฀selectivity:฀the฀
threshold฀income฀where฀migration฀becomes฀affordable฀varies฀from฀time฀to฀time฀and฀
from฀place฀to฀place.฀When฀the฀costs฀of฀migration฀are฀low฀relative฀to฀incomes,฀income฀
selectivity฀is฀also฀low,฀and฀if฀migration฀costs฀are฀high฀relative฀to฀incomes,฀income฀
selectivity฀is฀high.฀Although฀the฀policy฀implications฀of฀such฀trends฀are฀clear,฀it฀is฀
not฀at฀all฀clear฀whether฀or฀how฀development฀policy฀and฀planning฀would฀be฀able฀to฀
address฀the฀issue฀of฀out-migration฀from฀rural฀areas฀among฀the฀better฀skilled฀(see฀also฀
Kok,฀O’Donovan,฀Bouare฀&฀Van฀Zyl฀2003).

Recurrent฀changes฀in฀views฀on฀migration-related฀problems฀were฀reported฀by฀
the฀United฀Nations฀(2003)฀for฀the฀governments฀of฀South฀Africa฀and฀four฀of฀its฀
immediate฀neighbours.฀Tables฀1.1฀and฀1.2,฀based฀on฀these฀data,฀give฀the฀context฀for฀
these฀views฀in฀terms฀of฀the฀underlying฀magnitudes฀for฀the฀reported฀years฀from฀1976฀
to฀2003.
Table฀1.1฀(based฀on฀United฀Nations฀2003฀figures)฀shows฀the฀estimated฀numbers฀and฀
proportions฀of฀former฀immigrants฀with฀respect฀to฀five฀selected฀southern฀African฀
countries.฀The฀estimated฀international฀migrant฀stock฀in฀Namibia฀increased฀from฀
42฀000฀(4.5%)฀in฀1976฀to฀143฀000฀(7.5%)฀in฀2003.฀The฀same฀applies฀to฀Botswana,฀
whose฀foreign-born฀population฀also฀grew฀consistently฀from฀13฀000฀(1.6%)฀in฀1976฀
to฀52฀000฀(3.0%)฀in฀2003.฀On฀the฀other฀hand,฀South฀Africa,฀which฀accommodates฀
by฀far฀the฀largest฀estimated฀number฀of฀immigrants฀in฀the฀sub-region,฀has฀seen฀a฀
proportional฀decrease฀in฀these฀numbers฀from฀5.5฀per฀cent฀in฀1986฀to฀a฀significantly฀
lower฀3.0฀per฀cent฀in฀2003.฀
Whereas฀39฀per฀cent฀of฀Africa’s฀total฀population฀lived฀in฀urban฀areas฀in฀2003,฀by฀
2030฀the฀continent’s฀urban฀areas฀are฀likely฀to฀accommodate฀the฀majority฀(54%)฀of฀
its฀people฀(United฀Nations฀2004).฀As฀far฀as฀internal฀population฀redistribution฀in฀
the฀sub-region฀is฀concerned,฀Table฀1.2฀(also฀based฀on฀United฀Nations฀2003฀figures)฀
shows฀that฀the฀rural฀populations฀of฀Botswana,฀Lesotho฀and฀South฀Africa฀are฀
purported฀to฀be฀currently฀experiencing฀negative฀growth,฀while฀Botswana,฀Lesotho฀
and฀Swaziland฀experienced฀rapid฀urbanisation฀between฀1976฀and฀2003.฀Botswana฀
was฀particularly฀affected฀by฀urbanisation฀processes,฀with฀the฀level฀of฀urbanisation฀
increasing฀from฀13฀per฀cent฀in฀1976฀to฀50฀per฀cent฀in฀2003.
4
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10฀฀
•฀
฀migration฀in฀south฀and฀southern฀africa
Table฀1.1฀Selected฀southern฀African฀countries’฀immigrant฀populations฀฀
(international฀migrant฀stock)

฀
Botswana Lesotho Namibia South฀Africa Swaziland
1976
Percentage฀of฀total฀population
1.6 0.4 4.5 3.7 5.4
Number 13฀000 4฀000 42฀000 962฀000 28฀000
1986
Percentage฀of฀total฀population
1.7 1.1 7.4 5.5 5.8
Number 20฀000 16฀000 84฀000 1฀815฀000 41฀000
1996
Percentage฀of฀total฀population
2.4 0.3 7.5 3.3 4.0
Number 38฀000 5฀000 124฀000 1฀353฀000 38฀000
2003
Percentage฀of฀total฀population
3.0 0.3 7.5 3.0 4.0
Number 52฀000 6฀000 143฀000 1฀303฀000 42฀000
฀
Source:฀United฀Nations฀2003
Table฀1.2฀Indicators฀of฀spatial฀population฀distribution฀for฀selected฀southern฀African฀countries฀
Botswana Lesotho Namibia South฀Africa Swaziland
1976
Annual฀rural฀population฀growth฀(%)
2.5 1.6 2.2 2.5 1.8
Annual฀urban฀population฀growth฀(%)
12.6 6.7 4.8 2.7 10.1
Population฀density฀(people฀per฀sq฀km)
1 38 1 21 30
Urban฀population฀proportion฀(%) 13 11 21 48 14

2003
Annual฀rural฀population฀growth฀(%) -฀0.3 -฀0.4
0.9 -฀1.1 0.4
Annual฀urban฀population฀growth฀(%)
1.4 3.4 3.3 2.1 2.2
Population฀density฀(people฀per฀sq฀km)
3 59 2 37 62
Urban฀population฀proportion฀(%)
50 30 32 59 27
Source:฀United฀Nations฀2003
As฀far฀as฀urbanisation฀is฀concerned,฀Figure฀1.5,฀obtained฀from฀the฀Population฀
Reference฀Bureau฀(PRB฀2004),฀shows฀the฀United฀Nations’฀estimates฀(2004)฀that฀48฀
per฀cent฀of฀the฀world’s฀population฀lived฀in฀urban฀areas฀in฀2003,฀and฀this฀is฀‘projected฀
to฀exceed฀the฀50฀per฀cent฀mark฀by฀2007,฀thus฀marking฀the฀first฀time฀in฀history฀that฀
the฀world฀had฀more฀urban฀residents฀than฀rural฀residents’฀(United฀Nations฀2004:฀1).
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introduction฀฀
•
฀฀11
Figure฀1.5฀The฀world’s฀urban฀and฀rural฀populations฀(actual฀and฀projected)฀
Source:฀PRB฀2004
Source:฀Calculated฀from฀United฀Nations฀2004
Figure฀1.6฀Trends฀in฀urbanisation฀levels฀of฀selected฀southern฀African฀countries฀
(actual฀and฀projected)
The฀Population฀Reference฀Bureau฀puts฀forward฀a฀similar฀opinion:
In฀only฀200฀years,฀the฀world’s฀urban฀population฀has฀grown฀from฀2฀percent฀to฀nearly฀
50฀ percent฀of฀all฀ people.฀The฀ most฀ striking฀ examples฀of฀the฀ urbanization฀of฀the฀
world฀are฀the฀megacities฀of฀10฀million฀or฀more฀people.฀In฀1975฀only฀four฀megacities฀
existed;฀in฀2000฀there฀were฀18.฀And฀by฀2015฀the฀UN฀estimates฀that฀there฀will฀be฀22.฀
Much฀of฀the฀future฀growth,฀however,฀will฀not฀be฀in฀these฀huge฀agglomerations,฀but฀

in฀the฀small฀to฀medium-size฀cities฀around฀the฀world.฀(PRB฀2004:฀2)
5
As฀mentioned฀earlier,฀a฀similar฀trend฀is฀also฀prevalent฀in฀southern฀Africa.฀Estimates฀
by฀the฀United฀Nations฀(2004)฀show฀a฀very฀sharp฀increase฀in฀Botswana’s฀urbanisation฀
level฀during฀the฀1970s฀and฀1980s.฀This,฀and฀the฀slight฀increase฀in฀the฀level฀of฀
urbanisation฀in฀South฀Africa฀in฀the฀early฀1990s,฀is฀clear฀from฀the฀graph฀depicted฀in฀

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        


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        






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12฀฀
•฀
฀migration฀in฀south฀and฀southern฀africa
Figure฀1.7฀Government฀policies฀on฀internal฀migration฀into฀metropolitan฀areas฀in฀the฀
more฀developed฀regions฀of฀the฀world฀฀
Figure฀1.6.฀Namibia,฀on฀the฀other฀hand,฀has฀experienced฀a฀gradual฀increase฀in฀its฀
urbanisation฀level฀since฀1960,฀and฀the฀United฀Nations฀expect฀that฀trend฀to฀continue.
Figures฀1.7฀and฀1.8฀depict฀the฀policies฀chosen฀by฀more฀developed฀and฀by฀less฀
developed฀countries฀respectively,฀regarding฀internal฀migration฀to฀metropolitan฀
areas.฀In฀1976฀only฀44฀per฀cent฀of฀developing฀countries฀wanted฀the฀migration฀
to฀metropolitan฀areas฀to฀be฀lower฀(compared฀to฀55฀per฀cent฀for฀industrialised฀
countries).฀This฀proportion฀has฀however฀increased฀in฀recent฀years฀(by฀2003)฀to฀70฀
per฀cent,฀while฀in฀2003฀there฀has฀been฀a฀dramatic฀decrease฀–฀to฀a฀mere฀12฀per฀cent฀
–฀in฀the฀proportion฀of฀industrialised฀countries฀wishing฀to฀reduce฀migration฀into฀
their฀metropoles.฀This฀may฀be฀partly฀a฀reflection฀of฀the฀slower฀rate฀of฀migration฀into฀
the฀metropolitan฀areas฀of฀the฀industrial฀countries฀and฀also฀partly฀indicate฀a฀growing฀
realisation฀that฀very฀little฀can฀be฀done฀to฀influence฀population฀distribution,฀as฀
explained฀in฀this฀excerpt:
The฀spatial฀distribution฀of฀population฀has฀been฀remarkably฀intractable฀with฀regard฀
to฀policy฀initiatives.฀Governments฀in฀the฀past฀have฀attempted฀to฀modify฀population฀
distribution฀ in฀ a฀ variety฀ of฀ ways,฀ including฀ building฀ new฀ capitals;฀ encouraging฀
growth฀in฀small฀and฀medium-sized฀cities฀rather฀than฀in฀large฀ones;฀creating฀regional฀
development฀zones;฀and฀controlling฀the฀movement฀of฀people฀to฀cities.฀Most฀of฀these฀
attempts฀have฀failed฀to฀achieve฀their฀objectives.฀(United฀Nations฀2003:฀14)
Source:฀United฀Nations฀2003:฀39–40
Governments฀of฀developing฀countries฀still฀tend฀to฀be฀particularly฀concerned฀about฀

internal฀migration฀into฀metropolitan฀areas:
In฀developed฀countries,฀the฀share฀of฀Governments฀with฀policies฀to฀modify฀this฀flow฀
fell฀ from฀approximately฀ one-half฀ to฀ one-quarter฀ of฀ countries฀ between฀ 1996฀ and฀
2003.฀In฀contrast,฀developing฀countries฀are฀now฀more฀likely฀to฀intervene฀than฀in฀
the฀past.฀Between฀1996฀and฀2003,฀the฀share฀of฀developing฀countries฀with฀policies฀to฀
influence฀internal฀migration฀rose฀from฀53฀per฀cent฀to฀almost฀three-fourths.฀(United฀
Nations฀2003:฀14)


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


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
    

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introduction฀฀
•
฀฀13
Figure฀1.8฀Government฀policies฀on฀internal฀migration฀into฀metropolitan฀areas฀in฀the฀
less฀developed฀regions฀of฀the฀world฀฀

Source:฀United฀Nations฀2003:฀39–40
The฀greater฀propensity฀among฀developing฀countries฀to฀intervene฀in฀processes฀
of฀internal฀migration฀can฀probably฀be฀ascribed฀to฀the฀perceived฀detrimental฀
consequences฀of฀the฀rapid฀urban฀population฀growth฀that฀is฀taking฀place฀in฀many฀of฀
these฀countries฀(United฀Nations฀2003:฀14).
It฀is฀against฀this฀background฀that฀a฀study฀of฀the฀dynamics฀and฀determinants฀
of฀migration฀and฀non-migration฀has฀become฀particularly฀important.฀These฀
considerations฀call,฀firstly,฀for฀a฀clarification฀and฀contextualisation฀of฀concepts฀such฀
as฀‘social฀networks’,฀‘family฀influences’,฀‘information’,฀‘spatial฀contexts’฀and฀‘selectivity฀
factors’.฀What฀is฀needed,฀secondly,฀is฀an฀assessment฀of฀how฀existing฀migration฀
theories฀and฀models฀deal฀with฀the฀inter-relationships฀of฀these฀factors,฀and฀their฀
effects฀on฀migration฀intentions฀and฀subsequent฀behaviour.฀In฀this฀book฀some฀answers฀
are฀provided,฀but฀many฀questions฀remain.฀Only฀with฀purpose-made,฀longitudinal฀
research฀can฀these฀remaining฀questions฀be฀answered.
Orientation฀to฀this฀book
The฀abolition฀of฀apartheid฀caused฀the฀perception฀–฀in฀some฀ways฀inaccurate –฀฀
that฀South฀Africa฀was฀an฀exceptional฀case,฀to฀disappear,฀allowing฀a฀new฀view฀of฀
the฀country’s฀position฀in฀the฀regional฀and฀international฀context.฀With฀regard฀to฀
migration฀patterns,฀some฀comparative฀work฀between฀South฀Africa฀and฀similar฀cases฀
elsewhere฀is฀therefore฀in฀order.฀This฀would฀entail฀a฀comparison฀of฀the฀different฀
countries’฀rural–urban฀migration฀rates฀as฀well฀as฀urbanisation฀levels฀over฀time฀(see฀
Anderson฀in฀Chapter฀5฀of฀this฀volume).฀It฀would฀indicate฀whether฀South฀Africa฀is฀
lagging฀behind฀countries฀on฀a฀comparable฀level฀of฀development฀with฀regard฀to฀the฀
maturity฀of฀the฀urbanisation฀process.฀Apartheid฀attempted฀to฀limit฀the฀extent฀of฀
permanent฀African฀migration฀to฀metropolitan฀areas฀and฀could฀have฀had฀an฀effect฀on฀
urbanisation฀levels.฀Other฀comparisons฀could฀be฀made฀with฀regard฀to฀variables฀such฀
as฀levels฀of฀urban฀primacy฀and฀the฀degree฀of฀population฀heterogeneity฀brought฀about฀
by฀international฀migration.



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


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
    

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14฀฀
•฀
฀migration฀in฀south฀and฀southern฀africa
Another฀consequence฀of฀the฀dismantling฀of฀apartheid฀was฀increased฀interaction฀
between฀local฀scholars฀of฀migration฀and฀those฀on฀the฀rest฀of฀the฀African฀continent.฀
This฀has฀improved฀our฀understanding฀of฀migration฀patterns฀in฀the฀rest฀of฀Africa฀and฀
allowed฀us฀to฀interrogate฀our฀local฀data฀in฀new฀ways.฀In฀the฀following฀paragraphs฀
we฀will฀give฀two฀examples฀of฀new฀perspectives฀on฀migration฀that฀arise฀from฀the฀
continental฀data.
In฀parts฀of฀sub-Saharan฀Africa฀there฀has฀been฀a฀significant฀degree฀of฀continuity฀
between฀pre-colonial,฀colonial฀and฀post-colonial฀migration฀patterns฀(see฀Adepoju฀in฀
Chapter฀2฀of฀this฀volume).฀This฀was฀especially฀the฀case฀in฀West฀Africa.฀Here฀many฀of฀
the฀pre-colonial฀African฀kingdoms฀had฀developed฀significant฀urban฀cultures฀and,฀as฀
colonies,฀did฀not฀receive฀significant฀numbers฀of฀settlers.฀Consequently฀there฀was฀less฀

discontinuity฀between฀the฀pre-colonial฀and฀colonial฀periods฀with฀regard฀to฀settlement฀
patterns฀compared฀to฀other฀parts฀of฀the฀subcontinent,฀South฀Africa฀included.฀Despite฀
these฀differences,฀it฀is฀still฀a฀worthwhile฀undertaking฀to฀see฀if฀we฀can฀establish฀any฀
continuities฀of฀this฀kind฀in฀the฀South฀African฀case,฀thus฀bringing฀a฀new฀perspective฀to฀
bear฀on฀local฀data.
Connected฀to฀this฀is฀the฀observation฀that฀in฀some฀cases฀international฀migration฀
shades฀off฀into฀short-distance฀moves฀and฀circular฀migration.฀This฀occurs฀especially฀
in฀West฀Africa,฀but฀also฀elsewhere฀on฀the฀continent.฀These฀are฀cases฀where฀colonial฀
boundaries฀divided฀ethnic฀communities.฀Members฀of฀these฀groups฀then฀utilise฀
their฀family฀and฀ethnic฀connections฀to฀facilitate฀their฀short-term฀movements฀across฀
borders.฀Because฀of฀these฀borders,฀their฀movements฀are฀registered฀as฀international฀
migration,฀although฀in฀practice฀these฀are฀circulatory฀moves.฀This฀observation฀
serves฀to฀remind฀us฀that฀migration฀patterns฀can฀be฀very฀complex฀and฀that฀category-
confounding฀movements฀such฀as฀the฀above฀are฀in฀many฀cases฀quite฀common.฀It฀also฀
suggests฀that฀we฀should฀gain฀more฀clarity฀about฀our฀typologies฀of฀migration,฀to฀make฀
sure฀that฀the฀categories฀employed฀in฀our฀research฀are,฀as฀far฀as฀possible,฀mutually฀
exclusive.฀The฀typology฀of฀migration฀described฀by฀Kok฀et฀al.฀(2003:฀9)฀deals฀with฀
circulation฀and฀more฀permanent฀mobility฀and฀distinguishes฀between฀migration,฀
residential฀mobility,฀commuting฀and฀other฀forms฀of฀spatial฀mobility.฀Their฀work฀
presents฀a฀simple฀and฀coherent฀set฀of฀dimensions฀for฀distinguishing฀between฀different฀
kinds฀of฀migration฀and฀is฀an฀example฀of฀what฀is฀needed฀in฀this฀respect.
It฀is฀not฀only฀the฀literature฀from฀the฀rest฀of฀Africa฀that฀makes฀us฀aware฀of฀how฀
complex฀migration฀can฀be.฀The฀South฀African฀migration฀experience฀has฀its฀share฀of฀
surprises฀for฀the฀migration฀literature.฀In฀an฀attempt฀to฀describe฀migration฀patterns฀
in฀South฀Africa฀during฀the฀twentieth฀century,฀Gelderblom฀(2004)฀makes฀a฀distinction฀
between฀two฀kinds฀of฀migration:฀residential฀and฀work฀migration.฀Residential฀
migration฀is฀generally฀a฀household฀move฀in฀which฀the฀whole฀household฀moves฀to฀
a฀new฀place฀of฀residence.฀Work฀migration฀is฀more฀likely฀to฀be฀that฀of฀an฀individual฀
and฀involves฀movement฀to฀a฀place฀of฀work.฀For฀middle-class฀people,฀these฀two฀kinds฀
of฀migration฀tend฀to฀overlap,฀which฀is฀why฀this฀distinction฀is฀unusual.฀Poor฀people฀

cannot฀always฀find฀a฀place฀for฀their฀families฀to฀live฀close฀to฀their฀work,฀however,฀and฀
in฀their฀case฀such฀a฀distinction฀may฀become฀essential.฀For฀black฀people฀in฀apartheid฀
South฀Africa,฀this฀scenario฀was฀the฀rule฀rather฀than฀the฀exception.
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introduction฀฀
•
฀฀15
At฀the฀beginning฀of฀the฀twentieth฀century฀most฀of฀the฀black฀population฀lived฀on฀
mainly฀white-owned฀farms฀and฀in฀the฀Reserves฀(which฀later฀became฀known฀as฀
‘homelands’),฀with฀only฀a฀small฀minority฀living฀in฀the฀urban฀areas.฀During฀the฀
course฀of฀the฀century฀these฀people฀moved฀away฀from฀the฀rural฀areas,฀slowly฀at฀first฀
but฀more฀rapidly฀from฀the฀1940s฀onwards,฀with฀migration฀reaching฀a฀peak฀during฀
the฀1970s.฀The฀movement฀away฀from฀white฀farms฀was฀associated฀first฀with฀the฀
termination฀of฀sharecropping฀and฀later฀with฀the฀ending฀of฀the฀labour-tenancy฀system฀
on฀white฀farms,฀as฀well฀as฀with฀the฀increasing฀mechanisation฀of฀agriculture.฀Upon฀
their฀removal฀from฀the฀white฀farms,฀the฀breadwinners฀of฀these฀families฀needed฀to฀
find฀jobs฀–฀which฀were฀available฀mainly฀in฀the฀urban฀areas.฀These฀breadwinners฀were฀
therefore฀forced฀to฀engage฀in฀work฀migration฀to฀the฀urban฀areas.฀
Because฀of฀the฀influx฀control฀system,฀only฀a฀small฀minority฀of฀the฀work฀migrants฀
took฀their฀families฀with฀them฀to฀the฀urban฀areas.฀Their฀removal฀from฀the฀farms฀and฀
their฀work฀migration฀to฀the฀urban฀areas฀was฀therefore฀of฀necessity฀also฀associated฀
with฀a฀new฀migration,฀residential฀migration,฀to฀find฀a฀place฀for฀their฀families฀
to฀live.฀Such฀a฀place฀was฀provided฀by฀the฀Reserves.฀During฀both฀the฀segregation฀
and฀apartheid฀periods฀these฀areas฀were฀extended฀to฀provide฀more฀land฀for฀black฀
settlement.฀Apartheid฀planners฀provided฀for฀‘closer฀settlements’฀in฀the฀homelands,฀
with฀the฀result฀that฀population฀densities฀were฀constantly฀increasing.฀Except฀for฀those฀
areas฀where฀there฀was฀some฀factory฀work฀as฀a฀result฀of฀industrial฀decentralisation฀
policies,฀most฀of฀these฀areas฀provided฀no฀jobs.฀The฀only฀thing฀they฀offered฀to฀the฀
families฀arriving฀there฀in฀large฀numbers฀was฀a฀place฀to฀live.฀Their฀meagre฀income฀was฀
derived฀from฀transfer฀payments฀from฀the฀state฀or฀from฀remittances฀from฀migrant฀

labourers฀and฀long-distance฀commuters.
On฀the฀aggregate฀level฀this฀combination฀of฀work฀migration฀and฀residential฀migration฀
appears฀as฀a฀large฀amount฀of฀rural–rural฀migration฀and฀a฀smaller฀amount฀of฀
circular฀rural–urban฀migration.฀Without฀the฀distinction฀between฀residential฀and฀
work฀migration,฀these฀rural–rural฀and฀circular฀rural–urban฀migrations฀appear฀to฀be฀
unconnected.฀Once฀this฀distinction฀is฀made,฀however,฀it฀will฀become฀clear฀that,฀at฀the฀
household฀level,฀there฀is฀an฀intimate฀connection.฀This฀distinction฀is฀useful฀not฀only฀
to฀the฀understanding฀of฀South฀African฀migration฀under฀apartheid.฀In฀other฀parts฀of฀
the฀world฀as฀well,฀jobs฀and฀cheap฀land฀for฀housing฀are฀often฀not฀available฀together฀in฀
the฀same฀town.฀In฀addition,฀the฀very฀prosperity฀that฀is฀associated฀with฀employment฀
creation฀might฀cause฀land฀prices฀to฀rise.฀Under฀these฀circumstances,฀households฀may฀
be฀forced฀to฀move฀to฀places฀where฀land฀is฀readily฀available,฀and฀where฀consumption฀
costs฀are฀lower.฀This฀residential฀migration฀might฀be฀a฀logical฀step฀for฀them,฀provided฀
that฀the฀new฀home฀readily฀offers฀access฀to฀transport฀routes฀and฀thus฀facilitates฀the฀
work฀migration฀of฀the฀breadwinners.฀The฀example฀provided฀by฀Gelderblom฀in฀
Chapter฀12฀of฀this฀volume฀demonstrates฀such฀a฀scenario.
We฀pointed฀out฀in฀the฀first฀paragraph฀of฀this฀chapter฀that฀the฀nature฀of฀international฀
migration฀to฀South฀Africa฀has฀changed฀since฀the฀abolition฀of฀apartheid.฀Previously฀
the฀only฀black฀people฀allowed฀into฀the฀country฀were฀migrant฀labourers฀who฀came฀
to฀work฀on฀the฀farms฀and฀mines฀on฀a฀temporary฀basis,฀short-term฀visitors,฀and฀
professionals฀who฀settled฀in฀the฀homelands฀(see฀Wentzel฀and฀Viljoen฀in฀Chapter฀8฀of฀
this฀volume).฀Since฀then,฀South฀Africa฀has฀attracted฀many฀more฀black฀professionals;฀
so฀many,฀in฀fact,฀that฀one฀can฀talk฀of฀a฀brain฀drain฀from฀African฀countries฀to฀South฀
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