South Africa is one of the most important destination countries for migration on the African continent. At the same time, it faces profound structural challenges: an expanded unemployment rate of 42.1 per cent, deep social inequality, overstretched public services, and widespread distrust of state institutions. Against this backdrop, xenophobic mobilisation directed at African migrants has become an increasingly visible and disruptive force in urban South Africa.
This report examines how xenophobic dynamics, particularly in the province of Gauteng and, comparatively, in Cape Town, affect social cohesion, institutional trust, and the rule of law. It analyses the rise of anti-migrant movements such as Operation Dudula, Put South Africans First, and March and March, and argues that xenophobia in South Africa should not be understood as a direct consequence of migration. Rather, it functions as both an expression and an amplifier of deeper structural tensions, in which migrants become scapegoats for unresolved conflicts over employment, housing, public services, and political belonging. The report concludes that sustainable responses to xenophobia require not only migration governance reforms but, above all, state institutions that are capable, trusted, and able to manage social conflict through rule-of-law procedures.