By Rahim Abdul
South Africa has asked several African countries to reimburse money it spent repatriating their citizens who were either deported or voluntarily returned home.
The South African Department of Home Affairs says the government spent approximately US$18 million on transportation, accommodation and other related expenses for foreign nationals removed from the country.
According to officials, Malawi, Ethiopia and Nigeria are among the countries that have already been asked to reimburse the costs incurred by the South African government.
South Africa says the request comes amid continued efforts to address the presence of undocumented foreign nationals in the country.
The government says approximately 82,875 foreign nationals have either been deported or voluntarily returned to their countries since the immigration-related tensions and operations intensified.
Officials say 16,078 people from Lesotho, Malawi, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Mozambique were deported through the Lindela Repatriation Centre between April and July.
The figures highlight the scale of South Africa’s ongoing crackdown on people staying in the country without the required documentation.
South African authorities say the government has been forced to meet the costs of transporting, accommodating and processing deported foreign nationals.
The Department of Home Affairs has therefore called on countries whose citizens have been repatriated to contribute towards the expenses incurred by South Africa.
Authorities say they will continue strengthening operations aimed at identifying and dealing with people who are living in the country illegally.
Nearly 60,000 people are reported to have been arrested for illegal stay in South Africa, with more than 16,000 arrests recorded in July alone.
The South African government says the operations will continue as part of efforts to enforce immigration laws, while the reimbursement request places additional financial responsibility on countries whose nationals have been repatriated.
