By Agencies

Zimbabwe’s government has told citizens facing xenophobic attacks in South Africa to return home and take up jobs allegedly created under President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration.

Responding to questions in Parliament on Thursday about what Harare was doing to protect Zimbabweans targeted in South Africa, Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi said those affected should come back and benefit from opportunities in Zimbabwe.

“Our labour ministry has statistics of many jobs created by President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government since he took over power in 2018. Therefore, those who are outside the country should come, get jobs and enjoy life in Zimbabwe,” Ziyambi said.

He added that Zimbabwe maintained good relations with South Africa and that anti-foreigner protests by pressure groups such as March and March did not reflect the South African government’s position.

“We understand those people in the streets attacking foreigners have no support of the South African government and police will arrest them,” he said.

But political analyst Precious Shumba dismissed the minister’s comments as out of touch with the realities facing millions of Zimbabweans.

“This is shocking. Unemployment is above 90%, nurses are on strike and teachers are struggling, yet a minister says people should return for jobs. Which jobs?” Shumba said.

African countries including Kenya, Malawi, Lesotho have warned migrants in South Africa to be cautious and remain indoors due to attacks targeting foreigners, and Ghana ​has lobbied the African Union regional bloc for action.

South Africa has seen a wave ‌of protests against illegal immigration which have been accompanied by instances of violence against migrants from other sub-Saharan African countries in South Africa, which has the largest economy on the continent.

Migrant rights groups say they are being ​scapegoated by South Africans who blame them for the country’s economic problems, namely high ​unemployment which hovers at over 30% and disproportionately affects the Black population.

Xenophobic attacks in South Africa have flared up periodically.

The vigilante group Operation Dudula has led campaigns against undocumented migrants, including at times blocking them from entering public health facilities.

The government ​has condemned the violence while ​also expressing sympathy ⁠for its citizens’ frustration over illegal immigration.

South Africa’s immigrant population has seen a steady rise over the past few decades, increasing from 2% of the total population in 1996 to 4% in 2022, according ⁠to ​a report from the national statistics agency Stats SA.

Most ​of them are from the Southern African Development Community region, it said.