Nigeria Summons South African Envoy Over Attacks on Nigerian Nationals

Nigeria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on May 2, 2026, that it had summoned South Africa's Acting High Commissioner for a formal meeting at the ministry's Abuja headquarters, scheduled for May 4 [1]. The agenda: "documented instances of mistreatment of Nigerian citizens and attacks on their businesses" during weeks of escalating anti-foreigner protests that have swept through Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape, and the Western Cape [1][2].

At least two Nigerian nationals — Amaramiro Emmanuel and Ekpenyong Andrew — and four Ethiopian citizens have been confirmed dead in the violence since mid-April [3][4]. Emmanuel died from injuries allegedly sustained after being beaten by personnel of the South African National Defence Force on April 20; Andrew was apprehended in Pretoria on April 19 following an altercation with Tshwane Metro Police, and his body was later discovered at a mortuary [3].

The summoning follows an earlier decision by Ghana to call in South Africa's acting high commissioner in Accra on April 23 [5], a formal statement by the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights on April 27 condemning the violence [6], and a United Nations warning about the trajectory of anti-migrant marches [7].

The Current Wave: Provinces, Perpetrators, and Targets

The violence did not emerge from nowhere. Organized anti-foreigner marches led by groups including Operation Dudula and a newer movement called March and March — the latter fronted by Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma — gained momentum through April 2026 [7][8]. Demonstrations in East London, Cape Town, Durban, and parts of KwaZulu-Natal turned violent, with mobs targeting foreign-owned shops, destroying property, and attacking African immigrants [9][10].

The targets have not been limited to Nigerians. Zimbabwean, Mozambican, Somali, and Ethiopian nationals have all faced violence, prompting Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa to urge his citizens in South Africa to stay indoors [11]. But Nigerians — concentrated in the informal trading sector and small business ownership in Johannesburg and Pretoria — have been repeatedly singled out [3][12].

An "Igbo king" — a community leader representing southeastern Nigerian residents — told the Punch newspaper that Nigerians had shut down businesses and were staying indoors across parts of Gauteng [12]. A countrywide shutdown was planned for May 4, raising fears of further escalation [8].

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) described the situation as "deteriorating" on April 29, reporting looting, property damage, and physical violence against Nigerians in Durban, Cape Town, and KwaZulu-Natal [3]. NiDCOM issued four demands: increased police presence in affected communities, swift prosecution of perpetrators, the establishment of a joint Nigeria–South Africa community safety forum, and protection for Nigerian students who had stopped attending school out of fear [3][13].

A Recurring Nightmare: The History of Xenophobic Violence

South Africa's anti-foreigner violence follows a grim and well-documented pattern.

Source: Various sources (Wikipedia, HRW, media reports)

Data as of May 3, 2026CSV

In May 2008, xenophobic attacks erupted in the Alexandra township of Johannesburg and spread nationwide, killing 62 people and displacing more than 100,000 [14][15]. In April 2015, a second wave centered on Johannesburg and Durban killed seven [14]. In September 2019, riots and looting triggered by the death of a taxi driver destroyed or damaged roughly 50 Nigerian-owned businesses in Jeppestown and the Johannesburg CBD, killing 12 people across the first week [14][16].

The cumulative toll across these four major waves exceeds 87 confirmed dead, though the true figure is likely higher given underreporting and the difficulty of documenting deaths of undocumented migrants [14][6]. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced in total.

Each episode has prompted diplomatic outrage. In 2019, Nigeria recalled its High Commissioner, Ambassador Kabiru Bala, and withdrew from the World Economic Forum on Africa scheduled for Cape Town [17][18]. Airline Air Peace arranged free flights for Nigerians seeking to return home, but only 640 of an estimated 100,000 Nigerians in South Africa signed up [14].

Nigeria's Diplomatic Toolkit: Strong Words, Limited Follow-Through

The 2026 summoning mirrors the 2019 playbook — but the question is whether Abuja will do more this time.

In 2019, Nigeria's diplomatic actions amounted to recalling its ambassador and boycotting an economic forum [17]. Neither trade suspensions nor sustained sanctions followed. Bilateral commerce continued largely uninterrupted [18][19].

This time, Ministry spokesperson Kimiebi Ebienfa stated that the government is "deeply worried about the implications of the unrest on bilateral relations" [1]. But the formal action so far — a summoning and a scheduled meeting — falls short of the 2019 recall.

Critics have questioned whether Nigeria's foreign policy apparatus is even positioned to apply sustained pressure. In a notable commentary, TheCable described the response pattern as "diplomatic timidity," arguing that Nigeria habitually issues strong statements that produce no structural change in how South Africa treats foreign nationals [18].

The $2.16 Billion Question: Trade as Leverage

Any Nigerian threat of economic retaliation must reckon with the structure of bilateral trade.

Source: Trading Economics / ThisDay

Data as of May 3, 2026CSV

In 2025, two-way trade between Nigeria and South Africa reached an estimated $2.16 billion [19][20]. South Africa exported $468 million to Nigeria — primarily goods vehicles, fresh apples, polypropylene, and iron and steel pipes for the oil sector — while importing $1.69 billion, mainly Nigerian crude oil [19][20].

The trade balance heavily favors Nigeria, which runs a $1.22 billion surplus [19]. South Africa, in other words, needs Nigerian oil more than Nigeria needs South African goods vehicles.

But the corporate equation complicates the picture. South African companies including MTN Group (telecommunications), Shoprite (retail, though recently scaled back), and Standard Bank (financial services) maintain significant operations in Nigeria [21][22]. MTN alone commands roughly 35% of Nigeria's mobile market [22]. Nigerian firms including Access Bank have expanded into South Africa in return [19].

Any trade sanctions from Abuja would risk disrupting services that millions of Nigerian consumers depend on. As Al Jazeera argued in 2019, "Nigeria cannot afford a stand-off with South Africa" because the economic interdependence — particularly South African corporate investment in Nigerian infrastructure — constrains the retaliatory options available to Abuja [23].

Impunity: South Africa's Prosecution Record

A central grievance for Nigeria and other affected countries is not just the violence itself but the near-total absence of accountability afterward.

Human Rights Watch reported in 2020 that there had been "hardly any convictions" for xenophobic crimes, noting that the pattern held across the 2008, 2015, and 2019 waves [24]. After the 2008 violence, 597 people were arrested — but only about 16% of those arrests resulted in a conviction [24][25].

Amnesty International, in a September 2019 statement, attributed the recurring violence directly to "years of impunity," arguing that the failure to prosecute perpetrators of past attacks effectively gave license to future ones [25]. The more than 600 arrests made during the September 2019 riots followed a familiar pattern: most of those detained were released within days without being charged [24][25].

South Africa's National Prosecuting Authority has not published comprehensive data on xenophobia-related conviction rates, making independent verification difficult [24]. What the available evidence shows is a system that generates arrests in the immediate aftermath of violence — often for political optics — but rarely follows through to trial and sentencing.

The African Commission's April 2026 statement called on South Africa to "conduct prompt, thorough investigations" and "ensure accountability and prosecution of perpetrators" [6] — language that echoes nearly identical demands made after every previous wave.

The Economic Argument: Legitimate Grievance or Convenient Scapegoat?

South Africa's unemployment rate stood at 32.4% in 2025, up from 24.7% in 2010, with youth unemployment exceeding 60% [26][27].

Source: World Bank Open Data

Data as of Dec 31, 2025CSV

These numbers form the backdrop against which populist movements like Operation Dudula and March and March have mobilized. Their core demand — tighter immigration controls, stricter visa regulations, and action against businesses employing undocumented foreigners — resonates with millions of South Africans who feel locked out of economic opportunity [8][7].

The Daily Maverick's editorial board argued in March 2026 that "South Africa does not have a simple xenophobia problem. It has a poverty problem, a labour market problem and a state failure problem — all of which are being collapsed into a single, convenient word: xenophobia" [27].

Julius Malema, leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters, offered one of the sharpest rebukes of the violence from within South African politics: "How many jobs have you created after attacks?" he asked protesters, pointing out that driving out foreign traders does not generate employment for South Africans [28].

Community leaders from the Nigerian diaspora have pushed back on the economic-grievance framing. A Nigerian community leader told the Punch: "Economic challenges in South Africa cannot justify xenophobic attacks" [29]. NiDCOM's statement similarly rejected the premise, stating "Nigerians are not criminals, stop killing us" [13].

The evidence on whether foreign nationals actually displace South African workers is contested. Academic research cited by the Institute for Security Studies suggests that immigrants often create rather than take jobs, particularly in the informal sector [30]. But for unemployed South Africans in townships where foreign-owned spaza shops (informal convenience stores) are visible symbols of competition, the economic argument has emotional force regardless of the macroeconomic data.

Continental Response: Condemnation Without Consequences

Ghana's decision to summon South Africa's envoy on April 23 marked a rare instance of a West African government acting before Nigeria on xenophobia [5]. Ghana's Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa formally demanded intervention to prevent further escalation [5].

The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights issued a detailed statement on April 27, calling on South Africa to dismantle vigilante groups, investigate violence against foreign nationals, and enhance protection measures for migrants [6]. The United Nations separately warned about the trajectory of anti-migrant marches [7].

But neither the African Union Assembly nor ECOWAS has ever formally censured South Africa for xenophobic violence [31][6]. The Human Rights and Legal Research Centre described the AU's pattern as one of "silence" that "fuels a human rights crisis," noting the absence of "decisive intervention, sanctions, or sustained pressure" on Pretoria [31].

This reluctance reflects South Africa's outsized economic and political weight on the continent. As Africa's most industrialized economy and a key player in SADC, the BRICS grouping, and AU politics, South Africa has rarely faced the kind of institutional pressure applied to smaller states [31][23].

President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the violence in his Freedom Day speech on April 27, warning that the government "would not tolerate vigilante action or mob justice" [5]. But critics note that similar language from South African leaders has preceded every previous episode of violence — without preventing the next one.

Legal Protections and the Compensation Gap

Nigerian nationals in South Africa are entitled to protections under the South African Constitution, which extends the right to life, dignity, and freedom from violence to all persons within its borders — not only citizens [14][24]. South Africa's Refugees Act and Immigration Act provide additional protections for documented migrants and asylum seekers.

A 2001 bilateral agreement between Nigeria and South Africa established a joint commission intended to address consular issues, including the treatment of each country's nationals abroad [1]. In practice, the mechanisms created by this agreement — including early warning systems and joint consular forums — have not prevented any of the four major waves of violence [1][18].

No systematic compensation program has ever been established for victims of xenophobic violence in South Africa [24]. Victims of the 2008, 2015, and 2019 attacks received no documented government compensation for destroyed businesses or lost property. The few avenues available — civil suits in South African courts or claims through the South African Human Rights Commission — require resources and legal access that most affected migrants lack [24].

In the current crisis, business owners have filed formal complaints with SAPS (South African Police Service) at the Pretoria Central Station [9], but past experience suggests these reports rarely lead to restitution.

What Comes Next

A countrywide anti-foreigner shutdown was planned for May 4, 2026, one day after Nigeria's scheduled diplomatic meeting with South Africa's acting high commissioner [8]. The convergence of these two events — one on the streets, one in diplomatic chambers — captures the tension between the organized mobilization driving the violence and the institutional channels attempting to contain it.

The structural conditions underlying the violence — South Africa's unemployment crisis, the visibility of African migrants in the informal economy, the impunity enjoyed by perpetrators, and the continental reluctance to hold Pretoria accountable — remain unchanged from 2008. Whether the 2026 response breaks the cycle or simply repeats it will depend on whether any of the parties involved — Nigeria, South Africa, the AU, or South African civil society — are willing to move beyond statements and into enforceable action.