Entries by Marisa Jacobs

WHITE PAPER: Home affairs in bid to revamp migration setup

31/03/2017 in , /by

The department believes the cost of the revamp will be money well spent.

The department is due to present a white paper on international migration to the Cabinet this week. Among the proposals are delinking residency and citizenship and the introduction of long-term visas based on a points and skills system.

The department also wants the removal of the automatic right of asylum applicants to work or study in SA. The department will push ahead with plans to establish border-processing centres for asylum seekers.

The department maintains 95% of asylum applicants are economic migrants.

Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba revealed the plans at a conference on international migration in Sandton on Friday.

Gigaba said the political and economic rationale for “strategically managing” migration had become imperative.

The department expects the white paper to lead to legislative changes by 2018, replacing the current 1999 policy document, which is seen as “outdated”.

Proposals include new long-term visas and quota systems for unskilled labour to tackle a problem of economic migrants presenting themselves as asylum seekers.

In the white paper, which has not quantified fiscal costs, the department proposes increasing staff to bolster manpower at processing centres.

There is, however, a freeze on hiring in the government.

The department is also pushing for the establishment of a border management agency.

Gigaba told Business Day on the sidelines of the conference that the department had prioritised getting Cabinet to endorse the white paper.

“I look forward to debating the merits of the bill in Parliament on May 4,” said Gigaba.

Research chair for African diplomacy and foreign policy at the University of Johannesburg Chris Landsberg said the white paper had seemingly struck a balance between state obligations to provide internal and external security, prioritise citizens’ welfare and honour regional and international agreements.

Achille Mbembe, a professor at the University of Witwatersrand’s Institute for Social and Economic Research, said the white paper’s path to citizenship did not appear to be sufficiently flexible.

As published by Business Live

Home Affairs turn screws on migrants: Changes five Acts‚ border processing centres‚ citizen panel

20/03/2017 in , /by

He was speaking at a conference on international migration‚ which including discussions on SA’s new White Paper on International Migration. The draft paper‚ expected to be given to Cabinet by the end of March‚ includes amendments to at least five Acts‚ including the Immigration Act and Marriage Act.

The department is also pushing to establish new structures‚ such as a Border Management Authority that could manage all aspects of cross border movement of people and goods.

Home Affairs expects the new White Paper to lead to legislative changes by 2018‚ replacing the current 1999 policy document now seen as “outdated”.

The department sees the policy framework as a shift towards a more “Afro-centric” immigration regime‚ leveraging the development potential of migration‚ particularly at a regional level.

The draft White Paper seeks to increase “rules” on economic migrants‚ and the removal of an automatic progression from residency to citizenship.

The Green Paper on International Migration‚ published in June 2016‚ proposed sweeping changes to SA’s approach to economic migrants‚ refugees and naturalisation.

These included “processing camps” that would house refugees pending adjudication of their cases. It would remove the automatic right to work or study pending the finalisation of an application that would take place in 120 days. This proposal remains‚ with a naturalisation strategy‚ to be developed.

The draft White Paper also proposed the mandatory registration of South African expatriates.

It wants the introduction of a points-based system to determine eligibility criteria for long-term visas‚ which puts an end to a process of automatic citizenship for long-term residents.

This would be replaced by a proposed “Citizenship Advisory Panel” to consider applications.

Some 16 million foreigners enter and exit SA every year‚ with 1 082 669 asylum seekers being registered between 2006 and 2015. SA has also deported 369 000 people from 2012 to 2017‚ with Home Affairs estimating that 95% of asylum applications are from economic migrants as opposed to political refugees.

The department is expected to argue before Cabinet and Parliament that the cost of no investment in managing migration exceeds that of building capacity‚ but it has not quantified the cost to the fiscus of its various proposals.

“… It is not possible to prepare a complete fiscal and financial assessment of the White Paper’s implications which should be more properly assessed during the legislative process‚” an abridged version of the draft White Paper reads.

(As published by www.timeslive.co.za)

Home Affairs to Host International Migration Conference

17/03/2017 in , /by

Minister Malusi Gigaba has identified the development of a new international migration policy as one of his top priorities during his term of office. This policy review seeks to lay a solid policy foundation for South Africa to manage international migration securely and effectively, in line with the National Development Plan. In the 2014/15 financial year, the Department of Home Affairs submitted a Discussion Paper on international migration to the Minister for approval. The Discussion Paper served as a basis for drafting the Green Paper, which was submitted in the 2015/16 financial year and approved by the Minister on 29 March 2016. The Green Paper has been used as a basis for drafting the White Paper on international migration to be submitted to Cabinet for approval by 31 March 2017.

The National International Migration Conference will be attended by Ministers of Home Affairs from Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland; ambassadors; as well as international experts and practitioners invited to share international experience on the management of international migration.

(as published by www. dha.gov.za)