The African Union has backed a broader continental debate on migration after Ghana proposed placing South Africa’s recent xenophobic attacks on the agenda of an upcoming AU meeting, South African authorities said on Thursday, 30 July.
According to Reuters, South Africa’s spokesperson for International Relations, Clayson Monyela, said Pretoria had managed to avert an attempt to ‘isolate’ the country, arguing that any discussion should address the migration question in general terms.
‘The AU will discuss the issue of migration broadly and look at the pull and push factors,’ Monyela wrote on social media platform X, referring to the conditions that drive people to leave their home countries and the factors that attract them to other destinations.
South Africa has seen a wave of anti-migrant demonstrations and episodes of xenophobic violence in recent months, with anti-immigration groups demanding the expulsion of undocumented foreign nationals from the country.
Ghana has been among the most vocal African critics of the attacks on migrants in South Africa and repatriated hundreds of its citizens ahead of a 30 June deadline set by a South African movement targeting undocumented foreigners.
According to local media, the AU rejected Ghana’s proposal to treat xenophobic violence in South Africa as a specific, standalone agenda item at the organisation’s mid-year coordination meeting, scheduled for October.
South African authorities maintain that any approach to migration must encompass the economic, social, and political drivers that cause millions of Africans to move within the continent.
As of the time of reporting, South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation and a spokesperson for the Ghanaian government had not issued official comments on the decision.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/2026/07/30/mundo/africa/ua-vai-debater-migracao-apos-ataques-xenofobos-na-africa-do-sul/
