The Minister of the Interior, Leon Schreiber, reported that between January and August, 37,942 undocumented foreign nationals were detained and deported, with the government spending over 463 million rand on containment and repatriation operations.
The Minister of the Interior, Dr. Leon Schreiber, presented this data in a parliamentary response to a query by MK Siyabonga Percival Mkhize, an MP from the party, who requested detailed information on the detained and deported illegal foreigners since January, as well as related expenditures.
Schreiber clarified that the Department of the Interior can only provide information on the number of detained and deported individuals, but not on detentions conducted by other law enforcement agencies.
Of the 37,942 foreign nationals detained and deported by the Department of the Interior between January 1 and August 31, the largest groups were citizens of Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique, and Lesotho.
Zimbabweans accounted for 12,407 deportations, followed by 10,725 Malawians, 9,548 Mozambicans, and 4,435 people from Lesotho. These four countries collectively accounted for 37,115 deportations registered by the department.
Schreiber added that the figures presented do not include the 'huge number' of people who passed through the Department of the Interior for repatriation.
This data emerged after the government intensified repatriation operations in June, which occurred against a backdrop of a surge in undocumented foreign nationals seeking assistance at temporary points, particularly in Durban, amid heightened tensions surrounding illegal immigration.
Between June 14 and August 20, approximately 86,596 foreign nationals were processed for deportation and repatriation under coordinated law enforcement operations.
At the Musina repatriation processing temporary center in Limpopo, established in June to assist in processing undocumented foreign nationals, 48,948 people were processed before its closure in August.
The department spent 122.68 million rand on containment from January to August. The highest monthly containment bill was issued in April at 45.2 million rand, followed by May (17.66 million rand) and February (11.6 million rand).
The department stated that repatriation costs from January to May were not incurred. Repatriation costs recorded from June to August amounted to 341.22 million rand, which, combined with containment costs, brought the total disclosed in the response to approximately 463.9 million rand.
The largest item of repatriation expenditure was 232.83 million rand for buses provided by Atlantis. Furthermore, the department recorded 48 million rand for the creation and operation of the Musina Temporary Repatriation Processing Center by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure.
Other costs included 10.66 million rand paid to the city of Ekurhuleni for transport to Musina, 3.8 million rand to the city of Cape Town for transport and accommodation in Epping, and 8.76 million rand for charter flights to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Burundi.
The department also accounted for 9.56 million rand for accommodation in Durban and Musina, and 14.55 million rand for travel, containment, event venues, and other incidentals.
Schreiber noted: 'It is important to note that the Department reimbursed the cities of Ekurhuleni and Cape Town for the buses provided.'
He also stated that the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure had not yet submitted its request for coverage of costs for the creation and maintenance of the Musina temporary processing center.
The department indicated that the costs for repatriating undocumented foreign nationals are covered by the South African government. He emphasized that during the recent period, the costs associated with repatriation were borne by the South African government.
Coordination was carried out with relevant countries where appropriate to assist in identifying, documenting, and returning their citizens. However, the department noted that such cooperation did not always result in these countries reimbursing South Africa for repatriation costs.