South Africa to deport illegal immigrants to Kenya as visa restrictions relaxed

South Africa will deport all illegal migrants from other nationals to Kenya as part of a new deal that will relax visa restrictions for Kenyans.

Under the new deal, brokered by President Uhuru Kenyatta and his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa after a state visit by the President last month, it will now be the responsibility of Kenya to block all illegal migrants entering South Africa from Kenya.

Kenya will be required to take back the deported illegal immigrants from South Africa who entered the country from Kenya, shifting the burden of curbing the flow of illegal migrants to Nairobi.

South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor said on Sunday that Kenya and South Africa reached an agreement about the deportation after an increase in people from abroad to Kenya and then to South Africa.

She said that we have signed agreements on returning illegal entrants, so now we are moving towards granting an e-visa which we piloted in India and is working quite well, according to South Africa news outlet Daily Maverick.

We have been saying to Kenya, you have a responsibility to stop people, because if you are an asylum seeker, the first country they come to should be the one they remain in. They shouldn't be crossing borders. We have agreed now that we can send people back if there is proof that they have been through Kenya. Free entry into South Africa has been prevented by South African visa restrictions for Kenyans and made it hard for them to do business in South Africa.

The restrictions, which are a thorny issue for the two countries, include a Sh 5,350 processing fee that takes at least five working days to process.

Kenyan Visa applicants must provide proof of their funds, return flight air tickets and other documentation, amongst others.

South African nationals have a Kenyan visa free of charge on arrival to the country, which makes it easier for them to get a Kenyan visa.

South Africa exported Sh 45.7 billion worth of goods to Kenya in 2020, against imports from Kenya of Sh 3.48 billion, signaling trade is heavily skewed in favour of South Africa due to restrictions.

After a state visit by President Kenyatta, a committee was set up by Kenya and South Africa to deal with issues related to visas.