Douglas Gibson says as a nation there are far too many who sit back
and wait for govt to provide
South Africans need some immigrant "can-do."


The story of migration is this year`s sensation. We could learn from
it. The mass movement of migrants to Europe is reputedly the largest
movement of people since the Second World War. This is so because of
the number of people moving in such a short time.


Taking Thailand and South Africa as case studies, however, both might
be examples of migration greater than any European country has to cope
with, but with very different outcomes.


Among the most impressive things about Thailand, where I spent four
years as an ambassador, is that it has the lowest unemployment rate in
the world. Official figures quoted by Bloomberg Business state that
the rate was .56 per cent for 2014.


There is little in the way of social security and forty per cent of
Thais engage in agriculture. If a worker loses his job, he can always
find a place in the agricultural sector or the informal sector or do
something on his own, according to the Bank of Thailand, quoted by the
Bangkok Post.


The effects of immigration on Thailand and South Africa have been
startlingly different. Leaving xenophobic incidents and some
ill-treatment of immigrants aside, Thailand has managed to absorb some
three million immigrants, mostly employed in lower-skilled
occupations, while maintaining a record low unemployment rate.


South Africa has not done nearly as well. We may also have absorbed
upwards of three million migrants, most of whom have found employment,
but we have one of the highest unemployment rates in the world, at 26
per cent and rising.


People who have come here generally have a reasonable standard of
schooling but few have higher qualifications or scarce skills.


Somehow they find jobs or create them.


What of our own people? Why is it that so many remain unemployed and
perhaps even unemployable?
Part of the reason is that a generation after democracy, the schooling
standard is very poor. We are in a race to the bottom with the worst
in the world. Answering the question, "How well does the education
system meet the requirements of a competitive economy?" the World
Economic Forum ranked South Africa on 29 September 2015 at 138 out of
140 countries – worse even than Haiti and Nicaragua. Thailand was
74th of 140 countries.


These are a few of the African countries scoring higher rankings than
ours:
Kenya: 30; Zambia: 36; Zimbabwe: 43; Lesotho: 49 and Swaziland: 64.



It is therefore firstly a question of education and skills that are
lacking. This can be addressed if we decide to tackle the problem and
solve it..


But South Africa has also permitted a huge and irreplaceable
skills-loss to occur. Estimates vary, but something like a million of
our citizens left our shores in the past few decades. Most of them
were educated, skilled, employed and able to pay taxes and help create
jobs. The loss is vast

and underestimated. If we had retained these
skills, it would have made no real difference to the political scene
but just imagine how different our economy would look with another
million taxpayers working and contributing to our growth.


I speak from experience when I say that after being away from this
country for a while one starts longing for South Africa, its wonderful
people, its climate and the fact that it is home. Hundreds of
thousands living elsewhere feel that deep longing and many could be
persuaded to return if they were welcomed and recruited.


Of course a lot of them are white; that is not a very popular skin
colour with some in government but considering the taxes they would
pay, and the jobs they would help create our rulers might decide to
revert to their non-racial ANC past.


We should also be recruiting immigrants with scarce skills in other
African countries as well as Europe and India, for example, who could
make a major contribution. We often make educated potential settlers
feel unwelcome with obtaining work visas a nightmare of red tape and
delay. Think about doctors, for example; we seem to make it as
difficult as possible for medical people to come here and practise,
while we wave goodbye to our own whom the rest of the world welcomes.



We also need to look at another problem. Why is it that so many of
our young people are not getting the jobs that do exist? Why do they
not do some of the jobs that immigrants are very happy to take? It
pains me when I hear, quite often, that employers prefer Zimbabweans
and Malawians, "Because they work harder."


We must look at whether migrants to and from South Africa can teach us
a thing or two about working hard and knowing that a job, any honest
job, is honorable and is far preferable to being unemployed.


As a nation there are far too many who sit back and wait for the
government to do everything; or wait for a handout; or Julius Malema`s
economic illiteracy of "economic freedom in our lifetime;"or for
Professor Thomas Piketty`s dream of helping the poor by taxing the
rich even more. They ignore the efforts people should themselves make
to better their lives; to make themselves employable; to create their
own future without expecting the government or the taxpayer or
somebody else to do it for them.


What we need to learn is the immigrant spirit of grabbing the future
and making it happen. If our education is no good, let`s insist that
the politicians and take South Africa up the ladder of educational
excellence. If we have a reputation for not wanting to work hard
here, let`s prove them wrong by showing that we can outwork and
outperform anyone from anywhere else in Africa.


Douglas Gibson is a former Opposition Chief Whip and a former
ambassador to Thailand. V.1310

One of the highlighted topics: Critical Skills Visa.

- Key Insight: Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast track to working in South Afr...
- This matter relates to critical skills visa and its broader implications.
- Individuals are advised to seek professional guidance.

Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast trac V.6139
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One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, became a victim of identity theft in 2012 when fraudulent transactions occurred, using her personal details.

-The Pretoria High Court found that the department of home affairs had violated constitutional rights without due process.
-Only half of Lawyers for Human Rights` test group has been unblocked, while 385 000 identities remain blocked nationwide.
-LHR appeals extension, urges affected people to seek help now.

Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) are intensifying pressure on the department of home affairs over the national ID-blocking crisis, accusing the state of acting too slowly to unblock qualifying individuals despite a landmark court ruling.

In January last year, the Pretoria High Court found that the department`s practice of blocking IDs without due process was unlawful and unconstitutional. One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, a Swati citizen and South African permanent resident since 1998, fell victim to identity theft in 2012 when fraudsters used her personal details.

 V.6133
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6128
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6129
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A Washington state mother and her 6-year-old son have been released after spending more than three weeks in US immigration detention due to a brief trip to Canada and a small paperwork mistake, her attorney told CNN on Saturday.

Sarah Shaw, a New Zealand citizen who has lived legally in the US since she arrived in 2021, was detained at the Blaine, Washington, Customs and Border Protection checkpoint when returning home after dropping her two oldest children off at the Vancouver airport for a flight to visit their grandparents in New Zealand. Shaw, 33, chose the flight out of Vancouver because it was direct and she didn`t want her children to have to navigate a layover alone, her attorney Minda Thorward, told CNN.

 V.6130
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On 22 July 2025, the Gauteng High Court dismissed Sitrusrand Boerdery`s review of the Department of Employment and Labour`s refusal to issue a Working Conditions and Salary Benchmarking Certificate, an essential precondition for obtaining corporate visas under the Immigration Act.

Acting Judge Kekana AJ held that the Department`s decision was lawful, rational and procedurally fair. This judgment illustrates how businesses can - and must - structure their corporate visa applications to meet statutory requirements, and how legal practitioners should prepare robust review challenges when administrative authorities decline to recommend foreign-work permits.

 V.6131
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The United States could forfeit an estimated 9.4 billion dollars in visitor spending over the next three years following the introduction of a new 250 dollars `visa integrity fee,` according to industry groups, who warn the policy risks undermining tourism and costing thousands of jobs.
The United States’ decision to introduce a 250 dollars `visa integrity fee` on international visitors has triggered sharp criticism from the global tourism industry, with officials warning that the measure could deter millions of travellers and cost the U.S. economy billions.
The 250dollar `visa integrity fee,` part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed on July 4, 2025, will take effect later this year. According to immigration law firm Envoy Global, it applies to all nonimmigrant visa holders which include students, tourists, temporary workers, and business visitors particularly from African countries. V.6132
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6127
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1. Right to Legal Representation•You have the right to consult with a legal representative.•Contact an immigration practitioner, legal aid clinic, or attorney urgently.•Do not sign any documents without understanding them fully. 2. Section 34 of the Immigration Act•You must be brought to court with 48 hours to confirm arrest but you can remain locked up very long as courts figure out what to do with you •If you`re found to be illegally in South Africa, you may be detained for up to 30 days (extendable by a magistrate) pending deportation.•BUT this cannot happen arbitrarily. You must be informed of your rights, and Home Affairs must follow due process.- becomes a nightmare , you could lose your job , business , place to stay V.6121
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Driving for Bolt, Uber, Mr D, or Checkers Sixty60?If you`re undocumented, you`re risking more than just your income.The Risks if You`re Not Legal: - Vehicle impoundment - Heavy fines - Arrest & deportation - Permanent bans from working in SA V.6122
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