This archive report was first published on 7 September 2019.
South Africa's recent wave of xenophobia has sparked intense debate and discussion. However, the issue goes beyond mere xenophobia. It is a symptom of a deeper problem: social dumping.
Social dumping refers to the uncontrolled mass movement of poor, semi-literate, unskilled, and unemployable young people from one country to another. This phenomenon has severe economic and social consequences, including poverty, tensions in diplomatic relations, and hostility from host communities.
According to Alexander Opicho, writing in The Nation, 'There is no country in the world that ever developed by allowing its unskilled young people to migrate to other countries.' He argues that social dumping is a result of policy failures in both the host country and the countries of origin.
Opicho points out that many African countries have failed to plan for their young citizens, leading to a brain drain and a loss of skilled workers. This, in turn, has led to a surge in unskilled migrants seeking work in other countries.
Kenya is not immune to this problem. In the past 10 years, the country has received thousands of young and unskilled migrants from neighboring countries, including Uganda, Congo, Tanzania, and Nigeria. These migrants often settle in urban areas without a specific job to do, leading to social and economic burdens on the host government.
Opicho argues that the idea of unskilled young people creating jobs in a foreign country is a myth. 'The fact is that the unskilled Nigerian did not create any job in his home country and therefore cannot create any in a foreign one.'
Examples of social dumping can be seen in various parts of Kenya. In Turkana County, over half of the boda-boda and service providers in Lodwar town are from eastern Uganda. In Busia County, women politicians have threatened to organize a public protest march against the increasing population of commercial sex workers, allegedly from Uganda. In Eldoret town, more than 90 per cent of the street beggars are from Tanzania.
Opicho concludes that xenophobia is antipan-African, but pan-Africanism must promote good governance. Every country must plan for its young citizens, and Africans must stay at home and work on their countries' problems.
