Briefing Paper

Irregular Migration to South Africa During the First Ten Years of Democracy

“Irregular migration poses a considerable problem for South Africa in migration
management, population planning, infrastructure development, resource management, governance, social services, economic development and security. A government can only work with what it knows, with a reasonable margin of error. By its nature, irregular migration creates many unknowns. Where entry into South Africa is
clandestine or fraudulent, no proper account can be kept of the migrant’s presence,
movement, identity, nationality, health status or activities. Without the ability to
measure the problem, the ability to address it remains elusive.”