The return of Zimbabweans fleeing recent anti-immigration protests in South Africa has been delayed by mandatory security screening conducted by South African authorities, the Government has said.
The update comes amid reports that several Zimbabweans are stranded at the Zimbabwean Embassy in Pretoria awaiting clearance to return home.
Anti-immigration groups had set June 30, 2026, as the deadline for undocumented immigrants to leave South Africa. The groups circulated messages and videos on social media calling on foreign nationals to leave the country voluntarily and threatened a nationwide shutdown if the government failed to act by that date.
The looming deadline triggered fear among migrant communities, prompting thousands of foreign nationals to queue at border posts in a bid to leave before June 30.
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Providing an update on the repatriation exercise, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Zhemu Soda said more than 3 600 Zimbabweans had so far been brought home, although processing delays remained a major challenge.
“The Government wishes to give an update on the ongoing repatriation of our compatriots affected by the current disturbances in South Africa. As of June 29, 2026, approximately 3 624 of our nationals had been successfully repatriated and received back into the country,” said Soda.
He said South African authorities were carrying out compulsory background checks on all returnees before allowing them to cross into Zimbabwe.
“We must address the delays that some of our returnees have experienced. Current delays in the processing of returnees are a result of profiling requirements by the South African authorities,” the minister said.
“This is a mandatory security procedure undertaken by the host country, which entails checking personal data against their national database to ensure returnees have no criminal issues in South Africa,” he said.
Soda said Zimbabweans remain under South African jurisdiction until the security screening process has been completed.
“Until this process is complete, our citizens remain under South African jurisdiction,” he said.
He said the Government had deployed an inter-ministerial team to the Beitbridge Border Post to facilitate the smooth processing of returnees and provide support on the ground.
“His Excellency, President Cde Dr E.D. Mnangagwa has directed resources towards ensuring the safe and dignified return of every Zimbabwean who wishes to come back home.”
“In compliance with this directive, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made sure of the mobilisation of logistics for the repatriation of our affected nationals,” said Soda.
He added that additional personnel had also been deployed to strengthen consular services and manage the scale of the repatriation exercise.
“The Government has also deployed additional manpower to assist with the administration of the repatriation process, ensuring that our consular services are adequately equipped to handle the scale of this operation,” he said.
Acknowledging the anxiety among affected Zimbabweans, Soda said authorities were working to resolve the delays.
“We understand the frustration and anxiety this causes, but we assure you that the Government of Zimbabwe is making every effort to navigate these bottlenecks.”
“We are doing everything within our power to expedite the process and bring our people home as swiftly as possible,” he said.
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