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The Impact of COVID-19 on African Migrants and
Mobility in South Africa
Doi: https://doi.org/10.31920/2634-3649/2021/v11n1a13
Adegboyega Adedolapo Ola
School of African and Gender Studies,
Anthropology and Linguistics
College of Humanities
University of Cape Town, South Africa
Rondebosch, Cape Town, 7700
gboyegaola2016@gmail.com
Abstract
The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which started in December 2019, is one
of the greatest challenges currently facing the world. It has adversely affected
various sectors of the world, including the transportation system and the
movement of individuals. To curb the spread of the disease, governments of
various nations, including South Africa’s n state, have taken various steps and
measures that include movement restrictions, border closure, massive testing,
contact tracing and quarantines. In the absence of a face-to-face interview or data
collection measures due to COVID-19 safety measures, the study took its data
from social media observations and online secondary sources (official gazette),
while the analysis is descriptive. The study analysed the various effects of
COVID-19 on African migrants and their mobility in South Africa, along with the
various income sources and remittance challenges. Finally, the study avers that the
wellbeing and welfare of migrants should be taken into consideration during the
pandemic.
Keywords: COVID-19, South Africa, Africa, Migrants, Mobility
Introduction
African Journal of Development Studies (AJDS)
ISSN 2634-3614 E-ISSN 2634-3622
Formerly
AFFRIKA: Journal of Politics, Economics and Society
ISSN: 2634-3630 E-ISSN: 2634-3649
Indexed by IBSS, EBSCO, COPERNICUS, ProQuest, SABINET and
J-Gate
Volume 11, Number 1, March 2021
pp 275-288
The Impact of COVID-19 on African Migrants and Mobility in South Africa …
276
Human beings move around for opportunities, pleasure, and a change of
life (Laura, 2015). The movement and relocation of people have continued
to grow exponentially in recent years, with increasing interests from
scholars and international organisations (International Organisation for
Migration, 2020). This has also created biases in migration research as
studies focus more on mobility than on the structural and personal factors
that restrict people’s movement and create ‘immobility’ (Schewel, 2020).
Just as debates on these factors became a conceptual issue and seemed to
be on the increase, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) broke out in late
2019. According to Rothan and Byrareddy (2020), COVID-19 is caused by
SARS-COV2 and represents the causative agent of a potentially fatal
disease that is an extreme global public health concern. Having infected
millions of people in various countries, the continuous spread of COVID-
19 reached an epidemiological criterion against which the World Health
Organisation (WHO) declared the novel coronavirus a pandemic in March
2020 (Callaway, 2020; Cucinotta and Vanelli, 2020; Remuzzi and Remuzzi,
2020). This disease has continued to ravage different sectors, including the
transportation system and the mobility of individuals. All over the world,
governments have restricted movement through border closures,
restrictions on air travel both locally and internationally, and stay-at-home
orders to contain the spread of the disease.
Before the coronavirus disease broke out in December 2019, the
mobility of people across intrastate and interstate borders was a common
way of life. However, this movement was interrupted and ‘immobility’
arose after the outbreak of the disease. Prior to the outbreak, studies on
mobility were mainly focused on migration issues. Scholars have defined
voluntary immobility as a deliberate decision not to move or migrate from
a location, while involuntary immobility occurs when an individual is
willing to emigrate from a geographical location but cannot accomplish this
desire due to certain factors that restrict their mobility (Carling and
Schewel, 2018; Castles, De Haas and Miller, 2013; Carling, 2002; Ferro,
2006; Fischer, Holm, Malmberg and Straubhaar, 2000; Mata-Codesal, 2015;
Ortiga and Macabasag, 2020; van der Velde and van Naerssen, 2011;
Werner and Barcus, 2009). These are indications that existing literature
have made a significant contributions to knowledge on mobility as a means
of achieving a decision to migrate or not, though the COVID-19 pandemic
has created a new academic dimension on mobility studies. According to
Sanchez and Achilli (2020), the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the
world’s perspectives on mobility. People all over the world are unable to
Adegboyega Adedolapo Ola / AJDS, Vol.11, Number 1, March 2021 pp 275-288
277
move around freely, either internationally or locally, because of the notion
that human mobility plays a central role in the spread of COVID-19. This
corroborates the position of Phillips (2020) that the COVID-19 pandemic
is being spread by people moving around, which led to the restriction of
movement of African migrants in China (Castilo and Amoah, 2020). It is
also believed that COVID-19 has affected the economic condition of
migrants and increased foreign-born unemployment rates in host
economies (Ouassif, 2020:2). Following on from the above discussions,
this study explored the effects of the disease on African migrants and their
mobility in South Africa.
Coronavirus Disease: Desired Mobility or Satisfied Immobility?
Moving from one place to another is an unrestricted and uninterrupted
global phenomenon worldwide, except for those who decide not to move
or individuals who want to migrate but cannot find suitable means of
achieving this aim (Carling and Schewel, 2018). The outbreak of COVID-
19 in the latter part of 2019 abruptly interrupted the global movement of
people in early 2020. Person-to-person transmission of COVID-19, which
broke out in December 2019 in Wuhan City, China, exposed several
people to the virus (Lu et al., 2020). By the end of January 2020, 7734 cases
had been confirmed in China, as well as in other nations like Taiwan,
Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Japan,
Singapore, the Republic of Korea, the United Arab Emirates, the United
States, the Philippines, India, Australia, Canada, Finland, France and
Germany (Bassetti and Giacobbe, 2020). Travel restrictions were
subsequently imposed by various nations as an extreme measure to contain
the virus. Restrictions on mobility were first imposed across cities in Hubei
Province of China on January 23, 2020, and partial movement restrictions
in other cities (Kraemer et al., 2020).
The virus gradually spread all over the world in February, as more
nations confirmed their first COVID-19 cases, including African countries.
Egypt was the first African nation to report a COVID-19 case on February
14, 2020 (Medhat and Kassas, 2020), reaching the continent through
travellers returning from hotspots in Asia, Europe, and the United States.
This was followed shortly thereafter by other African nations such as
Nigeria (Zhao et al., 2020). The first COVID-19 case in sub-Saharan Africa
was recorded in Nigeria where the virus reached the nation via a traveller
who had returned from Italy a few days prior to being diagnosed with the
disease on February 27, 2020 (Adegboye et al., 2020). Senegal confirmed its
first case of COVID-19 on March 7, 2020 via a traveller from Italy,
The Impact of COVID-19 on African Migrants and Mobility in South Africa …
278
whereafter the Democratic Republic of the Congo confirmed its first case
in an adult male, a few days after his return from France (Mehtar et al.,
2020). This supports the argument by Nkengasong and Mankoula (2020)
that the index COVID-19 cases reported in Africa were travellers from
various part of the world.
Since March 2020, the number of cases in the African region continued
to increase daily. According to the World Health Organisation, the African
region has recorded a total number of 1,774,409 confirmed cases, with
42,453 fatalities as at October 31, 2020. With the increase in numbers,
African nations have restricted movement within and outside the region,
although some leaders in the region have subsequently relaxed their
restrictions on international travel.
Research Methodology
This section of the study explains the research methods adopted to assess
the impact of COVID-19 on African migrants and their mobility in South
Africa. The study derives its data from the observation of trends in social
media and online secondary sources (official gazette) with regards to the
subject matter. Andrei (2018) opines that the internet is currently a
component of primary and secondary data sources which have already put
their mark on its evolution. The study adopted this method being
cognisant of the COVID-19 safety measure of social and physical distance.
The use of a descriptive research design in this study enabled the
researcher to accurately describe the phenomenon of COVID-19 on
African migrants and their mobility in South Africa.
COVID-19 and Mobility in South Africa
South Africa is one of the early African nations to record a COVID-19
index case on March 5, 2020, with patient zero arriving in the country from
Italy on the 1st of March, 2020 (Arndt et al., 2020; Zhao et al., 2020). As
earlier noted, COVID-19 reached the African continent from travellers
who returned from other regions of the world. Recording the first index
case of COVID-19, the South African government quickly declared the
virus a national disaster on March 15, 2020 and established the National
Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) as a measure to control the
spread of the virus (Amir, 2020; Labuschagine, 2020). In addition to travel
restrictions, schools and borders were also closed. The early travel ban
prevented the spread of new cases to South-Africa from Abroad
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(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2020).
Consequently, a 21-day national lockdown was initially announced. This
took effect on the 26th of March, 2020 (Labuschagine, 2020). Shortly
before the total lockdown and the border closure, most international
students and visitors had decided to leave the country to reunite with their
families, in order to avoid a situation of being stranded in the country as
was experienced in many parts of the world where unsuspecting visitors
and non-migrants were unable to move and became stranded in foreign
countries.
The pandemic led many nations in the world, including South Africa,
to evacuate its citizens in other countries and brought them home to be
reunited with their families. For example, 146 South African citizens were
repatriated from China on March 13, 2020 on a South African Airways
aircraft chartered by the South African government (Polokwane, 2020). To
avoid such situation, a friend who travelled out of South Africa shortly
before the lockdown in March 2020 said, “I prefer being with my family
during the lockdown than to be here alone”. This view corresponds with
the opinion of Mulder (2018) that family ties are a major factor to consider
when deciding whether to migrate or not. This also indicates how
influential family bonds are to migration and mobility. In addition, Kan
(2007) opines that having a social network of family members close-by
who can help in times of need decreases the likelihood of moving. The
extent to which family ties influence migration and immobility may also
depend on the competing costs and benefits of migration for individuals
(Mulder, 2018:1159), as those who decide to move without their family
might have future plans to communicate with them frequently and send
home money as well.
The lockdown affected the mobility of people across the country, as
gatherings of people were prohibited and movement was only allowed in
order to buy food, medical and essential purposes within the cities and
provinces. Nationwide, schools were closed and students were advised to
go home. Offices and businesses were shut down as well, while security
forces ensured that people complied with the ‘stay at home’ directive from
the government to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic (Arndt et al.,
2020). Contrary to what had been, people’s mobility became restricted in
order to limit person-to-person transmission of the virus (Mata-Codesal,
2015). As the spread of the virus increased globally, with over one million
five hundred thousand cases worldwide, and one thousand nine hundred
and thirty four confirmed cases in South Africa as at April 9, 2020,
President Cyril Ramaphosa, in a broadcast to the nation, acknowledged the
cooperation of South Africans towards the fight against the pandemic, and
The Impact of COVID-19 on African Migrants and Mobility in South Africa …
280
extended the lockdown for another two weeks with the existing lockdown
regulations remaining in force until the end of April in order to manage the
crisis and plan ahead by increasing the number of COVID-19 testing and
contact tracing processes. This affected the social life of many people and
the majority of businesses in the country, as workers had to work from
home (Keursten, 2020), since mobility became difficult due to the tight
security around the towns.
Even though the lockdown was able to slow down the progression of
the national pandemic, with the World Health Organisation commending
the South African government for the steps taken towards fighting the
COVID-19 spread, the virus continued to gradually increase nationally
with a total number of 725,452 confirmed cases by October 31, 2020, and
46,359,803 cases worldwide. In order to reduce the transmission of
COVID-19, governments all over the world continued to enforce social
and physical distancing, contact tracing and mass testing which later led to
the relaxation of lockdown by various nations. For example, China was the
first country to lift their lockdown in Wuhan after almost 100 days (Zhou,
2020). The decision was largely influenced by the success of strict social
and physical distancing, mass testing, and contact tracing that helped
reduce transmission and the number of new cases (Salzberger, Glück, and
Ehrenstein, 2020). President Ramaphosa acknowledged the above
development in a nationwide broadcast on the 23rd of April 23, 2020 and
announced the South African government’s plan to open up the nation’s
economy with effect from May 1, 2020.
The easing of lockdown in South Africa was structured as COVID-19
Risk Adjusted Strategy with a five-level plan:
Level 5 entails restrictions on movement, minimal economic
activities and closing the country’s borders;
Level 4 makes allowance for the resumption of some economic
activities ‘subject to precautions’, but still prohibits social gatherings;
Level 3 relaxes restrictions on work and social activities;
Level 2 gives further concessions on some leisure and social activities;
Level 1 is when normal activity will resume.
Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in South Africa, movement has been
restricted, even though the government eased the lockdown with the
nation moving from level five to level four on May 1, 2020, level three on
June 1, 2020, level two on August 18, 2020, and level one on September
21, 2020. However, South Africa still remained the country with the
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highest number of coronavirus recorded cases in Africa, with 725,452
confirmed cases by the end of October,2020.
COVID-19 in South Africa: African Migrants’ Perspective
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to be a global public health
emergency which is regarded as a disaster and a threat to the lives and
livelihoods of many individuals. This has negatively affected the migration
system globally (Sirkeci and Yucesahin, 2020), as most nations have closed
their borders to migrants. A few countries, however, have begun to open
their borders to tourists despite the increasing number of COVID-19
related cases. All African countries closed their borders and introduce
restrictions on their internal and international mobility (Geddes et al.,
2020). As no region has been spared the impact of the pandemic, the
immediate global cessation of most economic activities, as a result of
implementing lockdown measures, has left many businesses, households,
and individuals financially strained (Bison, Ahairwe and Hjoroge, 2020:4).
The lockdown experienced in various nations has led to loss of jobs and
sources of income for many individuals, including migrants globally (Borjas
and Cassidy, 2020). The COVID-19 crisis has deepened the struggle facing
migrants worldwide. As noted in an interview conducted with African
migrants, some of them stated that:
Things are so difficult in the jungle here, there is no tent and good food,
no drinking water, cloth or shoe”. “We are desperate, there is no way of
paying rent. Can’t get anywhere, there are no places offering
accommodation and places for accommodation. No one giving you
money to buy groceries, food banks are closed (BBC Documentary
Interview, 2020).
About 164 million people globally were estimated to be migrant workers in
2017 (International Labour Organisation, 2018). Boehnke (2001) estimated
that one in every fifty human beings is a migrant worker, a refugee or an
asylum seeker, or an immigrant living in a foreign country. Migrants
globally have become more vulnerable to COVID-19 with their increased
poverty (Lorretta, 2020).
From the African perspective, South Africa remains a regional hub for
African migrants with about four million migrants out of a total population
of more than 50 million. Many African migrant-owned small businesses
have collapsed, while many people have lost their jobs in South Africa due
to the national lockdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic (Garba and
The Impact of COVID-19 on African Migrants and Mobility in South Africa …
282
Willie, 2020). Migrants represent about 20 per cent of workers in South
Africa and may well have been among the first to be affected by lay-offs,
movement restrictions and other lockdown regulations impacting their
livelihoods, including a decline in various business activities (IOM, 2020).
The loss of jobs by migrants also had an impact on the families of the
migrants back home to whom they send money (Bisong and Ahairwe,
2020; Lakika, 2020). This has had a negative impact in remittances, with
about 40 per cent of households in Africa depending on these foreign
remittances as a source of living (Scalabrini Institute for Human Mobility
in Africa, 2020). This agrees with the opinion of Mobarak (2020) that
remittance has dropped drastically from R3900 to R1200, as the total
number of migrants sending money home has reduced as a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic. A report issued by Statistics South Africa noted that
about 18 per cent of migrants in the country remitted a smaller amount of
money during the lockdown, while the majority of migrant respondents did
not remit any money during the lockdown because they could not afford to
do so.
It is estimated that migrants in the informal sector are more vulnerable
to job loss and loss of income due to the COVID-19 pandemic than those
in the formal sector, as most migrants in South Africa fall within the
informal sector (Rugunanan, 2020). Mobarak (2020) also noted that the
incomes of international migrants’ families dropped more than the
incomes of non-migrants’ families. This has left African migrants with a
number of challenging situations as those wanting to return to their
countries due to financial difficulties could not do so. Also, migrants who
work in, or were planning to work in, another location could not access
their jobs or even travel home if they had lost their job. The COVID-19
pandemic has had numerous effects on the mobility and socio-economic
life of all South African inhabitants, however foreigners and Africa
migrants in particular are even more affected in terms of not being eligible
to receive some benefits and palliative support from the government, such
as the COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress grant of R350 ($20) provided to
all South Africans who are unemployed including those who have lost their
job as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic for a period of six months
from May 2020 (Mukumbang et al., 2020:4). Similarly, Kavuro (2020) stated
that some migrants such as the refugees and asylum seekers, totalling about
273,000 from different African countries, were excluded from the social
grant scheme and social relief of distress grants, which were designed by
the government to assist the vulnerable and unemployed to feed
themselves due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, migrants face an
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increased risk of contracting COVID-19 due to their living conditions, and
the significant challenges they have in accessing health care and the various
mobility restrictions.
Conclusion and Recommendation
The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred poverty, loss of jobs and the
meltdown of economic activities of many nations, as well as the mobility of
people which has been believed to be the major means of transmitting the
disease. This pandemic has negatively affected migrant communities
worldwide, as African migrants in South Africa have lost their livelihoods
and faced various challenges related to shelter, food, fear of getting
infected and inability to move to their place of origin. While migrants and
their entire household are the most vulnerable to the disease, host nations
such as South Africa should improve the welfare, protection and treatment
of migrants during the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to prevent a
national calamity, as the transmission of COVID-19 is a clear danger to
everyone living in a society.
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