CHAPTER 7: AFRICAN MIGRANTS’ NETWORKS WITH SOUTH AFRICANS
7.3. Formation and nature of social networks
7.3.1. Rationale behind migration to South Africa
In order to better understand the nature of social networks between Nigerians and South Africans, it is important to establish some context in terms of why these Nigerians migrated to South Africa in the first place. All the Nigerians sampled were born in Nigeria and had spent most of their lives in that country. Asked why they emigrated from Nigeria to South Africa, various reasons were identified that ranged from economic to social factors. The responses to this open-ended question were coded and are presented below:
i. Economic reasons
Out of the 36 migrants sampled, 18 (50%) stated that the reason why they emigrated from Nigeria to South Africa was to seek a better life as the cost of living was too high in Nigeria and there was also a high level of unemployment. The majority in this group were males;
seven working class and eight middle class male migrants. The remaining three females from both classes in this group said that they immigrated to South Africa to seek employment.
They included two working class and one middle class migrants and in all three cases, marriage was not a push factor. For example, Ado, sampled from the working class, who has lived in South Africa for more than 10 years, explains why she emigrated from Nigeria.
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Working class female
Middle class female
Working class male
Middle class male
Political crises 0% 11% 78% 11%
Study 0% 33% 0% 0%
Join spoise 78% 56% 0% 0%
Seek employement 22% 11% 22% 89%
Number of migrants
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I left Nigeria thinking I was going to get a better job. But I was wrong. Now I have to do small businesses here and there just to make ends meet (Interviewed 12/05/14).
Similarly, Chukwudi (Interviewed 20/05/14), a middle class male said that he came to South Africa to seek better employment opportunities in order to take care of his family.
It has been well documented in various studies that one of the main reasons why people migrate is to seek better economic opportunities especially in cases where the labour differential is higher in the host country. Todaro and Smith (2006: 342) observe that migration is mainly driven by a rational cost and benefit analysis on the part of migrants. It is motivated by “geographic differences in labour supply and demand and the resulting differential wages between labour-rich versus capital-rich countries” (Kurekova 2011: 21).
However, the case of South Africa is somewhat more complex as it is a dual economy with a high level of inequality. On the one hand, there are high levels of unemployment and on the other, numerous skilled positions are vacant. This disparity is one of the consequences of apartheid that deprived the majority of South Africans of proper education, and the brain drain of skilled South Africans who left the country after the demise of apartheid due to fear of retaliation as well as those who continue to leave the country because they are disadvantaged by post-apartheid affirmative action laws. According to Ndulu (2004), post- apartheid South Africa has lost approximately 1.6 million skilled people, while an earlier study by Bhorat et al (2002) stated that a total of 4,600 South African professionals had been lost annually since 1994. Most migrants such as Ado and Chukwudi seek to capitalise on these opportunities. However, irrespective of their economic situation, gender still influences the pattern of migration. As this study revealed, males capitalize more on the economic opportunities presented by migration than females. This is in line with Dodson’s (1998: 141) study that found that “men and women migrate to South Africa for different reasons. Men go primarily in search of employment, whereas women’s migration is driven by a wide range of social and reproductive factors in addition to economic incentives”.
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ii. Marital reasons
Another major factor identified as a reason for emigration is migrants’ desire to join their spouses who had migrated to South Africa. Twelve respondents (33%), made up of seven working class and five middle class women stated that this was a motivating factor in emigrating from Nigeria. Therefore, more women from the working class group provided this reason. For example, Remi from the middle class sample stated that
South Africa was way out of my list of most favourable countries to migrate to. I only chose South Africa because my husband had migrated there to look for job. I was comfortable in Nigeria. I had a good job as a teacher and a home in the Western part of Nigeria. But after my husband left it was only necessary that I joined him in order to keep our family united (Interviewed 09/07/14).
Only women identified this factor as their reason for migrating to South Africa. This is consistent with Kanaiaupuni’s (2000: 1311) study which maintains that “migration is a profoundly gendered process and that conventional explanations of men’s migration in many cases do not apply to women”. Balan (1981: 228) states that women’s decision to migrate is usually “a consequence of the decision made by the primary movers” (Balan 1981: 228). A majority of 12 of the 18 women (83%) sampled for the current study were secondary migrants.
iii. Academic reasons
The study also revealed that education was a motivating factor for immigration to South Africa. The academic system in Nigeria is plagued by various challenges such as irregular or poor remuneration of staff which result in incessant labour strikes that prolong the duration of study at universities. Extended study duration and the uncertainties surrounding the educational sector have been identified as the main reasons why Nigerians seek university education abroad (Kanyin 2013). This was confirmed in this study as three (8%) female respondents said they were attracted by the better deal offered by South African academic institutions. According to Fatima,
I came to South Africa to finish my undergraduate degree. It’s not that Nigeria doesn’t have good lecturers or school, but the government exploit these academic staff. They are paid peanuts and exploited. Because of this, most
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times they go on strike. When I was in Nigeria I was studying a four year degree but had spent three years in school but still in level one. In South Africa, the minute you are admitted you already know your stipulated time of graduation. This is not the case in Nigeria (Interviewed 29/09/14).
iv. Political persecution
Political persecution was another reason for emigration. Nigeria has had its share of political uncertainty, especially during the period of military rule that was marked by persecution of pro-democracy movements and their members.Three (8%) of the male participants said that they left the country due to such persecution. As Uzo from the middle class puts it,
I left Nigeria due to the oppressive government of late Abacha. My brother was a journalist who wrote some nasty but true comments about his leadership and there were attempts on our lives. We just had to leave. And since then South Africa became our new home (Interviewed 14/10/14).
These findings reiterate McAdam’s (2013) argument regarding crisis migration, which she describes as a movement triggered by social, economic, and environmental hazards (McAdam 2013: 10). These circumstances apply to the three migrants referred to above.
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7.3.2. Duration of stay