Thesis (M.Dev.) --University of Limpopo, 2013 / The focus of the study was on the impacts of undocuments on the provision of housing, job opportunities and health in Limpopo Province: A case study of Polokwane Municipality and the measures taken by the government to deal with illegal immigrants. The study was qualitative in nature and concentrated on illegal Zimbabweans and South Africans residing in Western burg(RDP side),Greenside,Lethuli Park,buite and bok streets, Department of health and Social welfare, Department of Labour and the Department of Housing. The area of study was Polokwane Municipality under the Capricorn district. The research findings confirmed that illegal immigrants have negative impacts on the provision of housing, job opportunities and health facilities in Limpopo Province as many respondents indicated that illegal immigrants were residing in RDP houses, all of them have access to health facilities and most of them were employed but only pay tax through the purchasing of goods and commodities for use and resale in the country and back in Zimbabwe.

This thesis is based on a study examining the concept of African scholarship through the contributions of foreign African academics at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) on the Howard College and Pietermaritzburg campuses. Being branded “The Premier University of African Scholarship” the study principally set out to investigate the role played by these academics as possible conduits in the expansion of African scholarship within the knowledge production circuit. The concept of African scholarship, though not a novel term, remains an elusive category that still needs to be defined within the global knowledge economy. A cursory look at written literature around African scholarship reveals a general tendency that presents „the debate‟ much more as a theoretical engagement and less at empirical engagements that could help advance the practicalities of this concept within the different intellectual debates. Among the different pockets of intellectuals concerned with the vision of African scholarship, the African diaspora outside the continent has always played a leading role in the need to address the African knowledge paradigms within the global intellectual production of knowledge. This study is of significance because it engages with an emerging African diaspora within the South African space and attempts to highlight how their experiences as migrants help in broadening the understanding of the African experience as a knowledge site. Using in-depth interviews within a qualitative research framework in combination with the technique of observation, the findings of this study reveal that as an emerging diaspora, foreign African academics at UKZN, are actively taking advantage of the university‟s slogan to meaningfully (re)insert „Africanness‟ in the kind of knowledge that is produced in the institution. Their contributions are measured in terms of postgraduate supervision, new research agendas, pedagogic and curricular development and networks of collaborations with other universities in Africa. Using an anthropological approach the study equally examines the implications of the attempt to position African scholarship within the global knowledge production map. The study further highlights the role that social identities such as gender, language, nationality, and race can play as epistemic spaces in the advancement of African scholarship. By engaging with these markers, the debate advances beyond the current ad hoc manner of presenting African scholarship simplistically within political rhetoric to a more nuanced incorporation of other markers which should occupy epistemic spaces within the discourse of African scholarship. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2014. / The majority of craft retail outlets in Cape Town are owned by immigrants mostly from the SADC and elsewhere on the continent. However, a notable proportion of African immigrant-owned survivalist and micro businesses that do not grow and develop into small and medium size enterprises (SMEs). Despite many studies conducted on craft businesses generally, little information exists on factors affecting the growth of African immigrant-owned craft businesses. The main objective of this study is to determine these factors. This study focused on four craft markets in the Cape Town area: Greenmarket Square, Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Hout Bay.The population of the study comprised all African immigrants at the selected craft markets and the municipal managers responsible for managing these selected markets. The sample frame of this study constitutes African immigrant entrepreneur-owned businesses that are three or more years old, registered and located in one of the selected markets. The study utilised a mixed method approach to collect and analyse data. Questionnaires (Quantitative) were administered to 122 African immigrant entrepreneurs and in-depth interviews (Qualitative) were conducted with the three municipal managers responsible for the four selected craft markets. Quantitative data was analysed separately using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) software, and face-to-face interviews were analysed by means of content analysis. The results of both methods were presented in tabulated format. Pushed by the need to survive and pulled by the many tourists in South Africa, African immigrant entrepreneurs turned to the craft business. In terms of the challenges faced, it was noted that limited access to finance and difficulty in acquiring a business location were start-up challenges, whereas the growth challenges were the seasonal and irregular nature of trade and xenophobia. Emanating from the findings of this study, recommendations were made to municipality managers to persuade the financial agencies to extend their funding assistance to deserving African immigrant entrepreneurs. Local government should grant immigrants trading permits and relax some of the restrictions to allow them to have a stall and do business. The municipalities should organise workshops to educate African immigrant entrepreneurs on the benefits of selling unique products and anti-xenophobic sentiment.

The informal economy in South Africa and other parts of the continent is a safe haven for many who are unable to find jobs in the formal sector of the economy. In the case of South Africa, it is not only the nationals of the country who are striving to survive and generate their income from this sector. Since 1994, the country has experienced a huge influx of immigrants from other parts of the continent some escaping from dire living conditions in their home countries and looking for better life opportunities while many others were forced to migrate from their own countries as a result of political unrest and lack of stability and security. Among these later example is the Somali community who are the subject matter of this study. Many of these mainly African immigrants including Somalis got involved themselves in the informal sector of the South Africa. This has increased the competition in this sector and caused clashes between South Africans and immigrants who were also involved in the sector. This study examines the involvement of the Somali immigrants in South Africa’s informal sector. The study is exploratory in nature and tried to find the surrounding factors that impacted on the involvement of Somalis in the informal economy of Motherwell. The study has found that Somalis who arrived in Motherwell are generally young unmarried men who were attracted to the area mainly because there were affordable business opportunities in the township. Somalis financed their businesses through various resources including their savings from working while working inside and outside South Africa and from the contributions by their families and friends. Despite facing high levels of crime where many Somalis were killed and their property looted, they are still determined to stay in the township. This can be shown by their high level of savings and their intention to invest in the township. Although this research does not aim to be comparative in nature, personal and business characteristics of Somalis as well as South Africans who are also involved in the sector vii were compared. Because of this comparison, it has became clear that though price is an important factor in the business competition between the two groups, it is not the only factor, neither the most important, that creates friction and the shift of loyalty of customers from one side to another. Quality of service, the number of the people working in the business, responsibility towards the area the business serves, the strictness or the leniency towards customers who want to buy but are short of money and many other factors created a friendly atmosphere between the businesses run by the Somalis and their customers. The study showed that some of the Somali as well South African business owners were of this view. Although the vast majority of the Somalis have a minimum level of education, they still contribute positively to the economy of the township and the greater Nelson Mandela Bay. This is done through renting business premises, paying both direct and indirect taxes and taking the business services to remote areas of Motherwell. The study suggests that there is a need to sooth the relationship between the two groups particularly between Somalis and South Africans who are involved in grocery businesses through meetings, seminars, and other get-together activities. This can be done by South African Police Service, Somali Association of South Africa in Korsten, community elders from both sides and other concerned government institutions as well as the academic institutions particularly Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. The business skills of both groups need to be uplifted in order to maximise their profitability and contribution to the people in the area.

MPM / Oliver Tambo Institute of Governance and Policy Studies

MA (Political Science) / Department of Development Studies

Thesis (M. A. (Criminology)) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / The aim of the present study was to explore Giyani residents‟ perceptions about xenophobic violence committed by South African citizens. The exploratory design, which is a qualitative paradigm was used to explore residents‟ perceptions about xenophobic violence in Giyani. Purposive sampling, aligned to non-probability sampling procedure was used to select participants. A sample of twenty-two (22) participants between the ages of eighteen (18) and forty-five (45) years were selected from the residents of Giyani Section A. Semi-structured interviews were used to gather data from the participants. Thematic Content Analysis (TCA) method was used to analyse the data. The following themes emerged from the study: understanding of xenophobic violence, attitudes of South African citizens towards immigrants, time at which xenophobic violence took place, factors that lead to xenophobic violence, impact of xenophobic violence and measures to curb xenophobic violence. According to the findings of the study, Giyani residents have different attitudes towards immigrants. Most of them seemed to be more tolerant towards foreign nationals. The study findings confirmed that competition over scarce resources; high crime rates and the influence of the media are major factors that lead to xenophobic attacks. Xenophobic violence has been said to have negative impacts on immigrants as well as the host country. During xenophobic attacks most immigrants are reported to lose their lives. The economic growth also gets affected because potential investors and tourists who bring money to the country return to their countries of their origin. KEYWORDS: Immigrants, Perception, Violence, Xenophobia, Xenophobic attack

Since 2012 more than 295 676 migrants have arrived in South Africa. Somalis form one of the most visible migrant minorities in the country. Since various studies have been conducted into the mistreatment of migrants and its psychological effects, this study aimed to investigate the reasons that led to the resilience of the Somali community residing in Fordsburg/Mayfair, Johannesburg despite the challenges they encountered. The sample for the study was selected using the purposive sampling technique. Data were collected through the use of face-to-face semi-structured interviews and subsequently analysed following Colaizzi’s (1978) descriptive phenomenological method of data analysis. The findings of the study show that the participants experienced several challenges en route to South Africa and once they reached the country. Their resilience can be attributed to reasons such as individual determination to achieve change, the Somali communal culture, religion and spirituality, the family spirit, gender role adaptation and hard work. / Psychology / M.A. (Research Consultation)

The World Health Organisation Commission for the Social Determinants of Health (CSDH, 2008) report calls upon the need to consider the social determinants of health, including migration in health planning. Unfortunately, the introduction of Pre Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) in South Africa is being framed as a stand-alone intervention without incorporating the social determinants of health i.e. migration and structural drivers of HIV, despite numerous evidence of failure of one-dimensional HIV approaches. The study aimed to explore the attitudes and knowledge (s) of HIV prevention amongst young, internal migrant, Black self-identifying gay men and its implications for PrEP. This study used an interpretive qualitative approach by conducting 12 in-depth interviews with both men who have sex with men (MSM) who self-identify as gay individuals and experts working in the field of HIV. Social determinants of health like migration and homophobic attitudes both within the health care system and beyond could impact the uptake of PrEP and continuity access for PrEP among MSM who self-identity as gay within the context of circular migration. Likewise, the study highlights structural drivers of HIV that if left unaddressed could also have a bearing on PrEP as an HIV intervention vis-à-vis PrEP uptake and continuity to PrEP access within a context of circular migration. Using Weiss (1979) interactive model, the study points out the need for all actors involved in policy making to take into account evidence, such as empirical data, best practices, insights from various stakeholders as a basis upon which South Africa’s PrEP policy/programme can be based on. / A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (Development Studies), November 2017 / GR2018

Research presented for the degree of Master of Management in the field of Public and Development Management to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management of the University of Witwatersrand. March 2016 / As an economic hub of Africa, South Africa has been experiencing an influx of economic and political migrants leading to the ethnic diversification of its population. This trend has incited a xenophobic atmosphere due to frustrations from locals, and has led to violent attacks towards foreign nationals. In particular, the Somali population has endured a high number of attacks as this group has successfully penetrated the informal business market in the townships of South Africa. Government has responded to these xenophobic attacks by proposing, amongst others, a Licensing of Businesses Bill in 2013. The bill has been criticised by the public as it is considered a hostile policy that aims to enforce regulations that restrict foreign nationals from operating businesses in the informal sector. This political dilemma has also led to questions as to how this policy response may have an effect on social cohesion in unequal societies where violence against Somalis is prevailing. The Klipspruit community was selected as it forms part of the City of Johannesburg that has a significant amount of Somali informal traders. The purpose of the study was to examine the root causes of violence against Somalis and the potential of the governments’ policy response to mitigate this phenomenon. In particular, the study also investigated the effect of the proposed Licensing of Businesses Bill on social cohesion development between Somalis and South Africans in Klipspruit. The qualitative research findings indicate that violence against Somalis was due to the economic situation, lack of regulation, competition and business miscommunication. The responses were generally driven by the perception that the government of South Africa introduced a bill that is fostered by nationalistic interests to the detriment of foreign nationals such as Somalis. It is therefore recommended that the government develops a way to enhance power sharing in decision-making processes, monitoring and correcting inequalities amongst culturally distinct groups, promoting cultural diversity and integration through education and lastly ensuring that the government acts in a constitutional manner. / GR2018