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This paper aims to explore perspective of South Africans on the effects of philoxenia on social cohesion between South Africans and African immigrants. The researchers employed exploratory research design, qualitative research methods and document analysis as well as in-depth interviews to solicit data. The work employed Philoxenia as a conceptual framework as well as positive and negative contact theories as tools of analysis. The findings indicate that South African perspectives on philoxenia is that, there exists “an ethic of hospitality toward foreign nationals”. This underscores the multifaceted nature of social cohesion within multicultural urban settings. While a number of South Africans in metropolitan areas, exhibit inclusive attitudes that facilitate positive intercultural relations, such experiences are not homogenous. They are not rooted in sustained emotional connection and fall short of fostering genuine. Compounding this challenge, the paper reveals that, manifestations of xenophobia, Afrophobia, and colour-blind xenophobia persist, often undermine the socio-cultural integration of African immigrants. The researchers recommend that, there is a need for a multi-level, collaborative approach to promoting a more deeply rooted form of philoxenia to address both the symbolic and material dimensions of social cohesion. Therefore, there are positive implications for African unity inspired by Philoxenia, while xenophobia, Afrophobia, and colour-blind xenophobia have negative spinoffs.

Based on three cases drawn from the consultation with Zimbabwean migrants whose Business Exemption Permits were terminated by the South African Government without following due process, this paper disallows the economic reasons advanced for such a decision. To this effect, this paper argues that ZEP business permit holders cannot be said to be taking jobs away from nationals.  On the contrary, this paper argues that ZEP business permit holders, while contributing to economic growth, also employ South Africans, thereby reducing the unemployment rate. It is on this basis that this paper argues that the termination of the ZEP dispensation is a populist measure to fit the anti-migrant sentiment in the country. It is an electoral engineering mechanism fuelled by xenophobic sentiments to tap into the electoral base of some political parties and a device to demonstrate that the government is tackling the migration issue. If that was not the case, ZEP business permit holders’ waiver application should be readily granted. On this note, this paper recommends that ZEP business permit holders should be exempted from the requirements of a business visa application because they are non-negligible contributors to the economic growth of the country.

Many scholars in the field of migration and xenophobia have consistently examined various levels and expressions of xenophobic behavior within the South African context. They have contributed significantly to conceptualizing migration as inherently conflict-prone, often citing incidents categorized as xenophobia, Afrophobia, and color-blind xenophobia in both scholarly and public discussions. While ample scholarly evidence exists regarding factors that promote social cohesion between South Africans and African immigrants, as well as their implications for African continental integration, there is a notable dearth of scholarly attention on how Philoxenia, the concept of extending friendship or hospitality to strangers, can contribute to the project of African continental integration. Utilizing qualitative research methods and document analysis as a data collection technique, this paper reveals those certain aspects of the South African migration legislative framework exhibit Philoxenic characteristics. Moreover, the paper provides evidence of multiple economic sectors and communities in the country that demonstrate Philoxenia. The paper concludes that Philoxenia can serve as a catalyst towards achieving a united state of Africa, while "xenophobia", "Afrophobia", "Threats” to social cohesion”, "colour-blind xenophobia” and “sibling fights or sibling bullying” are impediments to this long-term objective of the African Union. The paper recommends that, South Africa as one of Africa’s dominant African immigrants’ host state must come up with legislation that criminalizes the latter actions.

Internationally, migrants encounter a multitude of obstacles in the countries they settle in, including being denied access to essential services and economic prospects due to restrictive laws that undermine their ability to contribute to the fulfilment of the 2030 global agenda. While it is crucial to incorporate migration into development goals at all levels, the integration at the local government level is still incomplete. This research utilises the notion of global governance and employs a qualitative case study approach to conduct an explorative investigation of the difficulties pertaining to the integration of migration into municipal development plans. A total of 20 individuals engaged in municipal development planning were interviewed. The data was collected by reviewing municipal strategic plans. Thematic analysis was employed for data analysis. The study findings indicate that the lack of current migration data, negative attitudes towards migration, and insufficient coordination among parties responsible for development planning are the primary obstacles to integrating migration into municipal development planning. The exclusion of migrants has significant ramifications for municipal planning. Not only does it contradict the 2030 global goal, which recognises migrants as catalysts for sustainable development, but it also renders municipal planning inadequate and unsustainable. The discoveries aided in the creation of the Migration and Municipal Development Planning Framework. The framework has substantial ramifications for municipal planning since it delineates the actions that local municipalities could take to seamlessly incorporate migration issues into development planning, along with the anticipated results. The framework is a unique and valuable addition to the existing knowledge since it offers a fresh viewpoint on the relationship between migration and sustainable development, specifically at the level of local government.

Despite all the migration policies implemented in South Africa and the world at large, the illicit immigrants continue to suffer in the hands of the host communities. This paper seek to address the challenges and experiences of illegal immigrants in South Africa and the hostility by the host communities. In this qualitative study, linguistic data was collected through the focus group discussions with illicit immigrants from different countries in the African continent as well as the blinded focus group with communities in Limpopo province. The aim of the study was to explore the hostile environment that the illicit immigrants find themselves in while in South Africa and the problem of integration with the host communities. Findings from this study revealed that the illicit immigrants continue to become a problem in the receiving communities, and this is because they are snatching job opportunities for the locals since they do not mind exercising cheap labour, that’s is why there is tension between them and the locals. Most employers prioritise employing illicit immigrants instead of the locals. Furthermore, the participants indicated that the immigrants continue to temper with job security in the host communities. The researcher conducted two focus group discussions, one consisted of illicit immigrants from different African countries like Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi and Burundi, and the other focus group with the locals as blind group discussion. This is conceptualized as fear or black-on-black hatred which is also famously known as Afrophobia

This study sought to close this gap by exploring the xenophobic experiences of illegal migrant youths in Musina town in the Limpopo province of South Africa. Nine illegal migrant youths were purposively and conveniently selected to participate in this study. Data was collected through face-to-face semi-structured interviews and analysed thematically through the assistance of the Nvivo software. The objective of this study was achieved through the guidance of narrative theory. The findings of the study reveal that illegal migrant youth in Musina Town experience violent attacks and derogatory name-calling from the local citizens. The findings further reveal that illegal migrant youths are experiencing blame-shifting by the local citizens. Harassment in healthcare facilities and employment places is also revealed as xenophobic experiences of illegal migrant youths in South Africa. It is recommended that the South African government should develop educative and awareness campaigns to respond to xenophobia in the country. It is also recommended that the security at the border gates need to be tightened to mitigate the influx of illegal migrants into the country.

The aim of this paper is to analyse the reasons for differences in national migration policies. European societies are struggling with the problem of how to best include the immigrants in their social structures.  Although national migration policies in Europe have developed some common elements in recent years the contents and structure of national programmes vary widely in terms of their scope, goals, target groups and the institutional actors involved. The main question of the paper is “What explains the different migration policies of countries?” To answer the question, after mentioning the current differences within the European Union in terms of their migration policies, the paper will take Germany and France as examples which demonstrate sharply different cases of immigrant integration policies in the public course.